SALINAS, Calif. – Researchers from the USDA-Agricultural Research Service (ARS), Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, Md., announced the findings of a two year study into the efficacy of the proprietary SmartWash™ system on June 28 at the Center for Produce Safety (CPS) produce research symposium in Orlando, Fl.
Verification of the SmartWash™ system, developed by New Leaf Food Safety Solutions and earlier known as T128, was one of eight projects funded two years ago by the CPS. Last year the USDA-ARS research team released initial findings that were favorable, but reflected only laboratory research that needed validation in a processing facility.
The lab results demonstrated the benefit of SmartWash’s unique properties in terms of reducing pathogens in water when the chlorine concentration was low. To scale up, ARS went to the New Leaf test facility in Salinas, Calif., to validate the laboratory results in a functioning processing facility where researchers processed 7,000 pounds a day of spinach, lettuce and leafy greens, checking for cross-contamination on E. coli.
The USDA-ARS pilot plant study, funded by the CPS, showed that SmartWash
· Significantly reduces the survival of microbial contaminants in the wash water
· Reduces the potential for microbial cross-contamination
· Slows the depletion of chlorine when soil is in wash water
· Slows depletion of chlorine when plant materials are in wash water
· When combined with low levels of chlorine, exerts a synergistic sanitizing effect against E.coli O157:H7 in lettuce wash solutions
· When running chlorine alone, 20ppm of free chlorine in an 800-gallon wash system can be depleted when only 1,200-1,400 pounds of product is processed; therefore when running at 5,000 pounds/hour chlorine can be depleted in as little as 15 minutes
· Reduces E.coli O157:H7 survival and spread during lettuce wash when chlorine approaches depletion due to the presence of high organic loads in the wash water.
“The research overwhelmingly validates SmartWash for its ability to fulfill a critical need in the fresh food industry,” said Jim Brennan, president, New Leaf Food Safety Solutions. “In spite of stringent food safety best practices, food-related outbreaks are still occurring, and research results confirm that SmartWash provides a new tool that will help reduce the risk of future outbreaks.”
Now installed in standard wash lines at leafy greens and vegetable processing plants across the U.S. and Mexico, SmartWash has been used to wash more than 2 billion pounds of leafy greens and vegetables.
For more information, visit newleaffoods.com.
About New Leaf Food Safety Solutions
A division of Taylor Fresh Foods, the national leader in value-added produce in the foodservice category, New Leaf Food Safety Solutions provides innovative food safety solutions engineered specifically for the fresh food industry. Recognizing the critical need to prevent recurring outbreaks of food borne illness, New Leaf provides complete turnkey solutions including commercial scale testing, product installation, integration into client systems and customer support.
Source: New Leaf Food Safety Solutions