Interventions designed to kill bacteria during the rinse-and-chill cycles in meat and poultry plants are being given greater emphasis by manufacturers and users of antimicrobial treatments. Plant operators are incorporating an array of sophisticated pathogen-killing technologies that can be applied multiple times during processing to minimize contamination.

Ecolab, which last summer merged with Redmond, WA-based Alcide Corp., is a supplier of the Sanova and InspexxTM 100 rinse-and-chill applications. Sanova developed by Alcide, contains acidified sodium chlorite, and it intended to combat such pathogens in poultry and red meat plants as salmonella, E.coli O157:H7, listeria, and campylobacter. Agents typically are applied to poultry in a spray cabinet following evisceration and before birds enter immersion chillers. A post-chill dip tank containing Sanova is another potential application point.

Red meat or beef also can be rinsed with Sanova following skinning or evisceration. Carcasses often receive Sanova treatments after cooling, and again when the beef arrives at other plants for cutting.

Besides the Sanova treatments, Maverick also leverages such food-safety technologies as steam vacuums, steam pasteurization, organic acid washers, and ultra-violet lights.

Inspexx 100 is a mixture of peroxyacids that are designed to eradicate salmonella, campylobacter, listeria, and E.coli O157:H7. It can be applied to poultry in spray cabinets and immersion chillers.