Water application method influences survival or growth of Escherichia coli on bulb onions during field curing

What is it about?

All fresh-market bulb onions are cured before storage to allow the neck and skin to dry. Curing practices increase the storage life of onions by preventing moisture loss and decreasing the incidence of spoilage. This study investigated field curing of bulb onions and the survival of a surrogate bacteria that was introduced right before curing began. The percentage of onions that had the surrogate decreased over the 3-week curing period. The results confirmed a low risk associated with application of contaminated water through drip irrigation as the surrogate was not detected on any onions at the end of curing. The data also showed a potential risk associated with overhead application of contaminated water as the surrogate could be detected on some onions at the end of curing.

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