Abstract
The USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service has issued a "zero tolerance" for Listeria monocytogenes in ready-to-eat meat and poultry products. The Food Safety and Inspection Service recommends that consumers "Reheat [hotdogs] until steaming" to reduce the risk of listeriosis. We evaluated L. monocytogenes survival on inoculated frankfurters after reheating using common, in-home consumer practices. Frankfurters were inoculated with a six-strain mixture of L. monocytogenes to an initial level of approximately 107 colony forming units (CFU)/gram. Eight inoculated franks for each treatment were cooked using boiling water, a conventional electric oven, or a microwave oven. L. monocytogenes recovery was calculated after plating on Modified Oxford Agar and Tryptose Phosphate Agar. L. monocytogenes reductions were 3.2 log10 CFU/gram on franks microwaved with or without water for 60 seconds or cooked in a conventional electric oven at 500°F for 2 or 5 minutes. Franks cooked in boiling water for 30 and 60 seconds achieved reductions of 4.3 and 4.9 log10 CFU/gram, respectively. Franks wrapped in a paper napkin and microwaved for 60 seconds resulted in a 6.8 log10 CFU/gram reduction, the most effective consumer reheating protocol.
Highlights
Introduction entrappedL. monocytogenes from frankfurter contact surfaces during processing and production facility environmental contamination are major causes of L. monocytogenes product recontamination.USDA-Food Safety and Inspection Service has had a “zero tolerance” for L. monocytogenes in ready-to-eat products and began testing for the pathogen in 1987
We evaluated L. monocytogenes survival on inoculated frankfurters after reheating using common, in-home consumer practices
Frankfurters were inoculated with a six-strain mixture of L. monocytogenes to an initial level of approximately 107 colony forming units (CFU)/gram
Summary
Recommended Citation Ortega, M.T.; Thippareddi, H.; Phebus, Randall K.; Marsden, James L.; and Kastner, Curtis L. (2003) "Evaluation of consumer reheating methods for destruction of Listeria monocytogenes in frankfurters," Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Reports: Vol 0: Iss. 1.
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