Environmental surfaces in food processing plants.

Environmental surfaces in food processing plants can become significant organism ecosystems. This is especially true in processing plants where there may be a potential for environmental recontamination of the product. While the cleaning and sanitizing of food contact surfaces are usually performed thoroughly, environmental surfaces represent a more significant challenge. Drains, air handling systems, coolers and other environmental surfaces are not normally designed or installed with ease of cleaning and sanitizing in mind. Because these areas do not necessarily fall under a routine cleaning and sanitizing regimen, the time between cleaning and the tendency for heavier soil loading create harborages and biofilms that are more difficult to remove or inactivate than those which develop on food contact surfaces. There is also evidence that many of the commonly used sanitizers lose effectiveness in the presence of high organic load or when microorganisms are present in biofilms. Sanitizer selection and use parameters are critical to ensuring optimum antimicrobial activity. Contact: Bruce Cords, Ecolab, Inc., 840 Sibley Memorial Highway, St. Paul, MN 55118. Phone: [phone]. Fax: [phone]. URL: www.ecolab.com.