This is interesting....
http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/10/9/03-0745_article.htm
Chance of botulism is 163 cases in 10 years in 263 million people.
Not a single case was in beef jerky.There was one case involving a roast beef.
The majority was improperly canned foods,the next was dried uneviscerated fish... and then moist packaged foods opened then kept in an anerobic enviornment at room temps.
From 1990 to 2000, restaurant-associated outbreaks continued to cause a disproportionate number of botulism cases.
Yep, While Clostridium Botulinum is common the cases of Botulism are few because the technology of canning and food presevation has gotten better and the Toxin that produces the disease is detroyed at cooking temperatures. However, Clostridium Botulinum is not the only thing you need to worry about. Here is a chart of the most common Foodborne Pathogens, take heed of the number of pathogens that produce Toxins that are heat stable and more importantly the number of Spore Forming Bacteria that recognize the moderate temperature and increasingly reducing moisture of Jerky production as a stimulus to form the spores.
You are the key to preventing food-borne illness. By observing the simple rules of good handling, food poisoning can be eliminated.
[size=-1][size=-1]Bacteria
Responsible[/size][/size] | [size=-1]Description[/size] | [size=-1]Habitat[/size] | [size=-1]Types of
Foods[/size] | [size=-1]Symptoms[/size] | [size=-1]Cause[/size] | [size=-1]Temperture
Sensitivity[/size] |
|---|
| [size=-1]Staphylococcus aureus[/size] | [size=-1]Produces a heat-stable toxin[/size] | [size=-1]Nose and throat of 30 to 50 percent of healthy population; also skin and superficial wounds.[/size] | [size=-1]Meat and seafood salads, sandwich spreads and high salt foods.[/size] | [size=-1]Nausea, vomiting and diarrhea within 4 to 6 hours. No fever.[/size] | [size=-1]Poor personal hygiene and subsequent temperature abuse.[/size] | [size=-1]No growth below 40[sup]o[/sup] F. Bacteria are destroyed by normal cooking but toxin is heat-stable.[/size] |
|---|
| [size=-1]Salmonella[/size] | [size=-1]Produces an intestinal infection[/size] | [size=-1]Intestinal tracts of animals and man[/size] | [size=-1]High protein foods - meat; poultry, fish and eggs.[/size] | [size=-1]Diarrhea nausea, chills, vomiting and fever within 12 to 24 hours.[/size] | [size=-1]contamination of ready-to-eat foods, insufficient cooking and recontamination of cooked foods.[/size] | [size=-1]No growth below 40[sup]o[/sup] F. Bacteria are destroyed by normal cooking.[/size] |
|---|
| [size=-1]Clostridium perfringens[/size] | [size=-1]Produces a spore and prefers low oxygen atmosphere. Live cells must be ingested.[/size] | [size=-1]dust, soil and gastrointestinal tracts of animals and man.[/size] | [size=-1]Meat and poultry dishes, sauces and gravies.[/size] | [size=-1]Cramps and diarrhea within 12 to 24 hours. No vomiting or fever.[/size] | [size=-1]Improper temperature control of hot foods, and recontamination.[/size] | [size=-1]No growth below 40[sup]o[/sup] degrees F. Bacteria are killed by normal cooking but a heat-stable spore can survive.[/size] |
|---|
| [size=-1]Clostridium botulinum[/size] | [size=-1]Produces a spore and requires a low oxygen atmosphere. Produces a heat-sensitive toxin.[/size] | [size=-1]Soils, plants, marine sediments and fish.[/size] | [size=-1]Home-canned foods.[/size] | [size=-1]Blurred vision, respiratory distress and possible DEATH.[/size] | [size=-1]Improper methods of home-processing foods.[/size] | [size=-1]Type E and Type B can grow at 38[sup]o[/sup] F. Bacteria destroyed by cooking and the toxin is destroyed by boiling for 5 to 10 minutes. Heat-resistant spore can survive.[/size] |
|---|
| [size=-1]Vibrio parahaemolyticus[/size] | [size=-1]Requires salt for growth.[/size] | [size=-1]Fish and shellfish[/size] | [size=-1]Raw and cooked seafood.[/size] | [size=-1]Diarrhea, cramps, vomiting, headache and fever within 12 to 24 hours.[/size] | [size=-1]Recontamination of cooked foods or eating raw seafood.[/size] | [size=-1]No growth below 40[sup]o[/sup] F. Bacteria killed by normal cooking.[/size] |
|---|
| [size=-1]Bacillus cereus[/size] | [size=-1]Produces a spore and grows in normal oxygen atmosphere.[/size] | [size=-1]soil, dust and spices.[/size] | [size=-1]Starchy food.[/size] | [size=-1]Mild case of diarrhea and some nausea within 12 to 24 hours.[/size] | [size=-1]Improper holding and stroage temperatures after cooking.[/size] | [size=-1]No growth below 40[sup]o[/sup] F. Bacteria killed by normal cooking, but heat-resistant spore can survive.[/size] |
|---|
| [size=-1]Listeria monocytogenes[/size] | [size=-1]Survives adverse conditions for long time periods.[/size] | [size=-1]Soil, vegetation and water. Can survive for long periods in soil and plant materials.[/size] | [size=-1]Milk, soft cheeses, vegetables fertilized with manure.[/size] | [size=-1]Mimics meningitis. Immuno- compromised individuals most susceptible.[/size] | [size=-1]Contaminated raw products.[/size] | [size=-1]Grows at refrigeration (38-40[sup]o[/sup] F.) temperatures. May survive minimum pasturization tempertures (161[sup]o[/sup] F. for 15 seconds.)[/size] |
|---|
| [size=-1]Campylobacter jejuni[/size] | [size=-1]Oxygen sensitive, does not grow below 86[sup]o[/sup] F.[/size] | [size=-1]Animal reservoirs and foods of animal origin.[/size] | [size=-1]Meat, poulty, milk, and mushrooms.[/size] | [size=-1]Diarrhea, abdomianl cramps and nausea.[/size] | [size=-1]Improper pasteuriztion or cooking. cross-contamination.[/size] | [size=-1]Sensitive to drying or freezing. Survives in milk and water at 39 [sup]o[/sup] F for several weeks.[/size] |
|---|
| [size=-1]Versinia enterocolitica[/size] | [size=-1]Not frequent cause of human infection.[/size] | [size=-1]Poultry, beef, swine. Isolated only in human pathogen.[/size] | [size=-1]Milk, tofu, and pork.[/size] | [size=-1]Diarrhea, abdominal pain, vomiting. Mimics appendicitis.[/size] | [size=-1]Improper cooking. Cross-contamination.[/size] | [size=-1]Grows at refrigeration temperatures (35-40[sup]o[/sup] F.) Sensitive to heat (122 [sup]o[/sup]F.)[/size] |
|---|
| [size=-1]Enteropathogenic E. coli[/size] | [size=-1]Can produce toxins that are heat stable and others that are heat-sensitive.[/size] | [size=-1]Feces of infected humans.[/size] | [size=-1]Meat and cheeses.[/size] | [size=-1]Diarrhea, abdominal cramps, no fever.[/size] | [size=-1]Inadequate cooking. Recontamination of cooked product.[/size] | [size=-1]Organisms can be controlled by heating. Can grow at refrigeration temperatures.[/size] |
|---|
You don't have to take my word for it...Here is an excerpt from the USDA whose policies are the bases for all answers on Food Safety and Preservation...Please notice the last paragraph that is a conclusion reached for All Jerky Production not just Ground Beef...
http://Why is temperature important when making jerky? Illnesses due to
Salmonella and
E. coli O157:H7 from homemade jerky raise questions about the safety of traditional drying methods for making beef and venison jerky. The USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline's current recommendation for making jerky safely is to heat meat to 160 °F and poultry to 165 °F before the dehydrating process. This step assures that any bacteria present will be destroyed by wet heat. But most
dehydrator instructions do not include this step, and a
dehydrator may not reach temperatures high enough to heat meat to 160 °F or 165 °F.
After heating to 160 °F or 165 °F, maintaining a constant
dehydrator temperature of 130 to 140 °F during the drying process is important because:
- the process must be fast enough to dry food before it spoils; and
- it must remove enough water that microorganisms are unable to grow.
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http://Why is it a food safety concern to dry meat without first heating it to 160 °F?
The danger in dehydrating meat and poultry without cooking it to a safe temperature first is that the appliance will not heat the meat to 160 °F and poultry to 165 °F — temperatures at which bacteria are destroyed — before the dehydrating process. After drying, bacteria become much more heat resistant.
Within a
dehydrator or low-temperature oven, evaporating moisture absorbs most of the heat. Thus, the meat itself does not begin to rise in temperature until most of the moisture has evaporated. Therefore, when the dried meat temperature finally begins to rise, the bacteria have become more heat resistant and are more likely to survive. If these surviving bacteria are pathogenic, they can cause foodborne illness to those consuming the jerky.
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Top of Page]
http://What research findings exist on the safety of jerky?
"Effects of Preparation Methods on the Microbiological Safety of Home-Dried Meat Jerky" was published in the
Journal of Food Protection, Vol. 67, No. 10, 2004, Pages 2337-2341. The authors are from the University of Georgia (Brian A. Nummer, Judy A. Harrison, and Elizabeth L. Andress, Department of Foods and Nutrition, and Mark A. Harrison, Department of Food Science and Technology) and from Colorado State University (Patricia Kendall, Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition and John N. Sofos, Department of Animal Sciences ).
Marinating meat doesn't make raw meat safe. "Marination alone did not result in significant reduction of the pathogen compared with whole beef slices that were not marinated," concluded the study.
In the jerky studies, some samples showed total bacterial destruction and other samples showed some bacterial survival — especially the jerky made with ground beef. Further experiments with lab-inoculated venison showed that pathogenic
E. coli could survive drying times of up to 10 hours and temperatures of up to 145 °F.
A study by the Harrisons and Ruth Ann Rose, also with the University of Georgia, was published in the January 1998
Journal of Food Protection, Vol. 61, No. 1. The authors analyzed ground beef jerky made with a commercial beef jerky spice mixture with and without a curing mix containing salt and sodium nitrite.
Half of the ground beef was inoculated with
E. coli O157:H7 before making it into jerky strips and dehydrating it. The authors found that in both the heated and unheated samples,
the jerky made with the curing mix had greater destruction of bacteria than jerky made without it. The jerky made with the mix and heated before dehydrating had the highest destruction rate of bacteria.
Some believe the USDA are just Paranoid and put out reports to continue receiving Federal funds. Here is a brief synopsis from a more detailed study...
The aim of present work was to investigate the antimicrobial effects of sodium benzoate, sodium nitrite and
potassium sorbate and their synergistic action (sodium nitrite + sodium benzoate, sodium nitrite + potassium
sorbate, sodium benzoate + potassium sorbate) on selected food- spoiling bacteria and fungi, for a potential use in
food industry. The following species of microorganisms were tested: Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus mycoides, Staphylococcus
aureus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Aspergillus flavus, Fusarium oxysporum,
Candida albicans, Trichoderma harsianum and Penicillium italicum. The strongest antimicrobial effect was
exerted by sodium nitrite (MIC 0.5 mg/ml) in relation to the species Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Synergistic
action was noticed against 40% of the tested species (Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus
mucoides and Candida albicans) in the case of the sodium nitrite + sodium benzoate combination; and against
30% of them (Bacillus mucoides, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Escherichia coli) in that of the sodium nitrite
+ potassium sorbate combination. Escherichia coli manifested the greatest sensitivity to the combined action of
preservatives, Aspergillus flavus the greatest resistance.
Quote: " Ive never met or heard of a person killed from dehydrated beef slices with a salt or sugar cure.Ever.Salt and sugar are very effective dehydration cures. Nitrites and nitrates are indeed just salts,am I wrong?I will continue to use sea salts and marinades such as soy sauce that are loaded with salts.
I will let it go with this proviso,IMO nitrates and nitrites are also supposedly linked to adverse health effects and thats pretty well documented.Im personally not into adding additives to my food with known health hazards.Im willing to bet you are more likely to be killed by lightning than you are from home processed salted dehydrated non nitrated beef slices "
Yes Nitrite is just a Salt but considering you are eating more Nitrites having a Salad, ( See last link), the addition of a small amount Nitrite in Jerky production is that little bit of insurance against hurting your loved ones...JJ
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/poison.html
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/factsheets/jerky_and_food_safety/index.asp
http://www.agrojournal.org/15/04-05-09.pdf
http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/nutrition/DJ0974.html
