Evaluation of the transfer of Listeria monocytogenes from stainless steel and high-density polyethylene to Bologna and American cheese.

The objective of this study was to determine the factors involved in the transfer of Listeria monocytogenes from surfaces to foods. We evaluated the influence of surface type (stainless steel and high-density polyethylene), inoculation method (biofilm growth and attached cells), hydration level (visibly dry and wet), and food type (bologna and American cheese). Each experiment included all 16 combinations and was repeated 11 times. A four-strain cocktail of L. monocytogenes was used to inoculate stainless steel and high-density polyethylene either as growing biofilms or attached cells. Slides were placed on a universal testing machine and brought into contact with food at a constant pressure (45 kPa) and time (30 s). Food slices were blended, the number of transferred cells was determined by plating, and the efficiency of transfer (EOT) was calculated. The results strongly suggest that stainless steel surfaces transferred more L. monocytogenes to foods than did polyethylene (P = 0.05). Independent of the surface, biofilms tended to transfer more L. monocytogenes to foods (EOT = 0.57) than did attached cells (EOT = 0.16). Among foods, L. monocytogenes was transferred to bologna more easily than to cheese (P < 0.05). The impact of hydration on transfer was significantly higher for dried biofilms growing on stainless steel (P < 0.05). No significant differences for hydration were seen under other conditions (P > 0.05). We hypothesize that drying weakens cell-to-cell interactions in biofilms and cell-to-surface interactions of biofilms and thus allows increased transfer of cells to food products.