How does the availability of new technology aids processing companies in combating harmful microbes in foods?
Sperber: I think the new technologies available to the food industry to detect and verify the presence of pathogens in foods have become more rapid, sensitive, accurate and useful to us. For example, using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique for the detection of pathogens is widely used at meat plants to assure compliance with regulatory requirements such as the absence of E. coli O157:H7 in beef trim or raw ground beef, and the absence of L. monocytogenes in certain ready-to-eat meat, poultry and dairy products. The major advantage of PCR technology is that definitive results are obtained more quickly than is possible by using other technologies. Combined with pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) or ribotyping, PCR also is useful in conducting sanitary surveys of plant environments and process equipment to detect hot spots of specific pathogen contamination, and to enable development of effective corrective actions. Such high-powered technologies are not necessary for gen
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