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Irrigation water quality and the benefits of implementing good agricultural practices during tomato (Lycopersicum esculentum) production

Environmental Monitoring and Assessment volume 186, pages 4323–4330 (2014)Cite this article

Abstract

The implementation of good agricultural practices (GAP) from irrigation water to the tomato packaging process enhances the safety of fresh produce and its value throughout the food chain. The aim of the present study was to show that fresh produce farms that apply and enforce GAP could reduce the presence of Salmonella in finished produce. Samples were collected biweekly from six packing houses from the central region of Sinaloa, México, for the isolation of Salmonella spp by the ISO 6579:2002 method, and the isolated strains were serotyped and genotyped by the Kauffmman-White scheme and pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), respectively. Salmonella strains were detected in 13 (36.1 %) irrigation water samples, while only two tomato samples were positive (5.5 %). Eight different serotypes were identified in irrigation water, and Salmonella Oranienburg (34 %) was the most prevalent; however, only Salmonella Agona and Salmonella Weltevreden were present on tomatoes. Salmonella Oranienburg was the most widely dispersed and variable serotype, with 10 different PFGE profiles. Salmonella Weltevreden was isolated from both types of samples, albeit with distinct genetic profiles, implying that the sources of contamination differ. These results confirm the utility of implementing good agricultural practices to reduce Salmonella contamination in irrigation water and the packaging process.

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Acknowledgments

The authors profoundly thank Fundación Produce Sinaloa for its financial support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centro de Investigación en Alimentación y Desarrollo A.C, Carretera a Eldorado km. 5.5, Campo El Diez, Culiacán, 80110, México

    M. Estrada-Acosta, C. Chaidez, J. León-Félix & N. Castro-del Campo

  2. Universidad Autónoma de Sinaloa, Culiacán, México

    M. Jiménez

Authors
  1. M. Estrada-Acosta
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  2. M. Jiménez
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  3. C. Chaidez
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  4. J. León-Félix
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  5. N. Castro-del Campo
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Correspondence to N. Castro-del Campo.

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Estrada-Acosta, M., Jiménez, M., Chaidez, C. et al. Irrigation water quality and the benefits of implementing good agricultural practices during tomato (Lycopersicum esculentum) production. Environ Monit Assess 186, 4323–4330 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-014-3701-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-014-3701-1

Keywords

  • Salmonella
  • Microbial characterization
  • Irrigation water
  • Good agricultural practices
  • Tomato