Dry inoculation methods for nonfat milk powder

Carriers with inoculated microorganisms are often used to validate low-moisture food safety interventions. In this study, we evaluated dry inoculation methods using silicon dioxide (SiO2) and a small portion of nonfat milk powder (NFMP) as dry carriers for NFMP. Silicon dioxide was characterized by vapor sorption analysis. One milliliter of inoculum of a 5-strain Salmonella cocktail (serovars Agona, Reading, Tennessee, Montevideo, and Mbandaka) or Enterococcus faecium NRRL B-2354 was inoculated onto 1 g of SiO2 or 10 g of NFMP as carriers. Both inoculated carriers were air-dried for 72 h [22°C, relative humidity (RH) ∼30%], equilibrated to water activity (aw) 0.25 ± 0.02 (24 h at 22°C, RH 25%), and mixed with preconditioned NFMP (aw = 0.25 ± 0.02) to reach an inoculation level of 8.2 ± 0.2 log cfu/g. Inoculated NFMP was stored at 22°C, RH 25%, and its bacterial populations were monitored for 30 d. Both sets in equilibrated NFMP were subjected to isothermal treatments in closed aluminum cells at 85, 90, and 95°C. Silicon dioxide maintained moisture content (0.29 ± 0.03%, dry basis) at different water activities. The NFMP inoculated with both carriers exhibited stable bacterial populations over 30 d at 22°C. Strains in NFMP inoculated with SiO2 showed equal or higher D-values but equal z-values compared with those inoculated with a small portion of NFMP. Enterococcus faecium exhibited comparable thermal resistance to Salmonella under all tested conditions. This study supports E. faecium as a Salmonella surrogate in thermal processing of NFMP and the use of SiO2 to inoculate NFMP.