Microbial Contamination of Equipment Surfaces in Agro‐Industries
Résumé
Despite the substantial implementation of hygienic operations in food-processing lines, it remains difficult to produce food free of micro-organisms unless the process involves a sterilization stage. In the agricultural and food-processing industries, biofilms can grow on floors, walls, siphons and surfaces of workshops and equipment in food processing lines, for example on conveyor belts, pasteurizer surfaces, worktops and gaskets. A large number of publications are available in the biotechnology field on the role of flows on biofilm development and the consequences on the production of compounds of interest. In response to adverse environmental conditions such as high or low temperatures, pH fluctuations or nutrient depletion, many bacteria, including pathogens, such as E. coli , L. pneumophila , L. monocytogenes or P. aeruginosa , may enter a state that is physiologically viable but in which they are unable to proliferate. This bacterial form is called the viable but non-culturable form.