The effect of incubation temperature and inoculum size on growth of salmonellae in minced beef.

Growth rates and lag times of Salmonella organisms were determined in minced beef at temperatures between 10 and 35 degrees C. A mixture of serotypes containing antibiotic-resistance markers was used to allow small numbers of salmonellae to be counted in the presence of an excess of competing organisms. Maximum growth rates and lag times of salmonellae were unaffected by inoculum size. The effect of temperature on growth rate could be described by the simple square root relationship of Ratkowsky et al. (J. Bacteriol. 149, 1-5, 1982).