Development of an organic acid compound disinfectant to control food-borne pathogens and its application in chicken slaughterhouses

During poultry slaughter, cross-contamination of chicken carcasses with microorganisms (including drug-resistant bacteria) can occur because of incomplete disinfection during the pre-cooling process, and surface contact with contaminated tools and equipment. The use of disinfectants is the most common way to reduce the risk of cross-contamination and bacterial spread, as they can effectively reduce the number of bacteria. We developed a disinfectant consisting of organic acids and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and tested its bactericidal effects at different concentrations against Salmonella and Campylobacter. The main effective components in the disinfectant were citric acid, lactic acid, and SDS, and together they exerted a synergistic bactericidal effect. The bactericidal efficacy of the disinfectant increased with increasing concentrations of the 3 active ingredients. To reach a 100% reduction rate during a 15-s treatment in vitro, for Salmonella, the lowest concentrations of citric acid, lactic acid, and SDS were 0.06, 0.08, and 0.02%, respectively; and for Campylobacter, the lowest concentrations were 0.02, 0.025, and 0.0125%, respectively. The disinfectant remained effective in presence of interfering substances (e.g., 15% fetal bovine serum). Further experiments showed that the disinfectant inactivated sensitive bacteria as well as 23 drug-resistant strains of Salmonella and Campylobacter. Treatment with the disinfectant for 15 s decreased the concentrations of all tested strains by more than 4.7 log colony forming units per mL, and the reduction rate was as high as 100%. In on-site disinfection tests in chicken slaughterhouses, the disinfectant significantly reduced the number of pathogenic bacteria on carcasses during the pre-cooling process, and on tools (such as knives and gloves) during the segmentation process. Thus, this disinfectant has potential uses in preventing cross-contamination of food-borne pathogens (including resistant bacteria) in slaughterhouses.