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Abstract
The application of chemical disinfectants in postharvest food processing facilities is important for the control of foodborne pathogen outbreaks. Similar to drinking water disinfection, food processors will need to optimize disinfectant exposures to balance pathogen inactivation against exposure to potentially toxic disinfection byproducts (DBPs). Since most disinfection research has focused on drinking water, this review summarizes research related to disinfection in food washing facilities, particularly by chlorination and ozonation. Although these disinfectants are also used for drinking water, the conditions are significantly different at food processing facilities. After a brief summary of foodborne pathogen outbreaks, this review describes food processing treatment trains, particularly the critical differences in conditions encountered relative to drinking water disinfection (e.g., short disinfectant contact times and high and variable disinfectant demands). The review discusses research related to pathogen inactivation and DBP formation by chlorine and ozone during washing of produce, meat and seafood. In particular, the research highlights the difficulty of inactivating pathogens on food, but the efficacy of these disinfectants for controlling pathogen cross-contamination through the washwater. While most research on food-associated DBPs has focused on the same, low molecular weight DBPs of interest in drinking water, these DBPs partition to the washwater. This review highlights the need for research on the initial transformation products of disinfectant reactions with biomolecules, since these products may present a risk for consumer exposure by remaining within the food.
Graphical abstract
Disclosure statement
The authors declare no competing interest for this manuscript.