Survival of Salmonella enterica in Dried Turkey Manure and Persistence on Spinach Leaves

What is it about?

Salmonella spp. have been the cause of several major outbreaks in the U.S. related to the consumption of produce commodities (leafy greens, peppers, tomatoes, sprouts, etc.) and tree nuts . One route of contamination by Salmonella of crops may be through the dispersal of manure dust from adjacent animal livestocking operations. Since livestock animal manure is known to harbor bacterial pathogens like Salmonella, dust generated from these facilities may result in contamination of produce commodities. The results presented here show that Salmonella spp. survived for longer periods of time in manure particles with a moisture content of 5% and small particle size of 125 um compared to in manure with higher moisture contents (10% and 15%) and larger particle sizes (212, 355, and 500 um) . Futhermore, Salmonella spp. in manure dust deposited on spinach leaves was better protected from inactivation by ultra-violet light (simulated sunlight) than when no manure dust was present. The results of this study suggest that Salmonella spp. present in aerosolized, dry, small manure particles may contaminate leafy greens (and other crops), and that their survival (as well as other bacterial foodborne pathogens) may be enhanced due to the shielding affect of the manure particles. This work will be useful to other scientists, growers and regulatory agencies.

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