Managing pathogen contamination on the farm

Publisher Summary Infection with Escherichia coli O157:H7 is a very public, high-impact cause of human illness that can be acquired by ingestion of contaminated food or drinking water, via direct/indirect contact with cattle, or via person-to-person transmission. Cattle are considered to be a major reservoir of E. coli O157:H7, but the organism also has been isolated from other ruminants, dogs, horses, and birds. Although efforts to develop pre-harvest technologies have received less funding emphasis, scientists have slowly begun the process of studying ways to prevent proliferation of E. coli O157:H7 in and on live cattle. It is now clear that packing plant technologies for reducing prevalence of pathogenic organisms are overwhelmed by the ubiquitous nature of E. coli O157 in the environment and on live cattle entering commercial packing facilities. Of three total points of focus listed for the producer sector of the industry, one stated that it is necessary to evaluate adoption of interventions or Good Management Practices (GMPs) that have been scientifically validated and another suggested that systems that use a combination of interventions should be evaluated. Foodborne illness outbreaks associated with beef have received the lion's share of attention in the USA and beef pathogen prevalence has the most likely chance of being influenced by pre-harvest control strategies. This chapter focuses primarily on the evolution of pre-harvest strategies to prevent E. coli O157:H7 contamination of beef products.