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Antimicrobials for Food Processing, Pools and Drinking Water Systems
Antimicrobial pesticides are used in the processing and packaging of food products. When foods are handled, surfaces need to be free of potentially harmful germs prior to processing. The same surfaces also need to be cleaned to remove potentially harmful germs after food has been processed. Many states have specific food-handling requirements for buisinesses, check with your local health department for more information.
Most drinking water supplies have the potential for microorganisms like bacteria or other microbes to be present in the raw water. Some of these microbes can be harmful if you drink the water, thus drinking water is often disinfected before being delivered to your home with antimicrobial products like chorine or bleach. Private well water is usually not disinfected unless the well is contaminated, but disinfection can be done if needed.
Additional Resources on Antimicrobials for Food and Food Handling
- Safe Food Handling Fact Sheets - U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)
- The Bad Bug Book (Foodborne Pathogenic Microorganisms and Natural Toxins) - U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
- Antimicrobial Food Additives - U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
- Guidance on the Processing of Applications for Registration of Antimicrobial Products Intended to Mitigate Food Borne Pathogens - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
- Regulations and Policies of the Food Safety and Inspection Service - U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)
- Sanitation Performance Standards Compliance Guide - Food Safety Inspection Service (USDA-FSIS)
- Guidance for Use of Food-Grade Shell-Egg Sanitizers - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
- Draft Interim Guidance for Non-Residual Sanitization of Hard Inanimate Food Contact Surfaces Using Pre-Saturated Towelettes - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
- Antimicrobial Products to Disinfect Poultry and Other Facilities Against Avian (Bird) Flu - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
- EPA and FDA Streamline Food Packaging Regulations - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Additional Resources on Antimicrobials for Pools and Drinking Water Systems
- Disinfection - National Environmental Services Center Tech Brief
- Chlorination - National Environmental Services Center Tech Brief
- Drinking Water Contaminants - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
- Drinking Water Microbiological Health Advisories - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
- Bacteria and Other Microorganisms in Household Water - National Ag Safety Database
- Disinfecting Wells Following an Emergency - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- Well and Water System Disinfection For Private Wells - Minnesota Department of Health
- Well Disinfection - Minnesota Department of Health
- Disinfection and Remediation Guidelines for Pools and Spas - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- Healthy Swimming - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- Preventing Pool Chemical-Associated Injuries - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- Chlorine Fact Sheet - Wisconsin Department of Health Services
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If you have questions about this, or any pesticide-related topic, please call NPIC at 1-800-858-7378 (7:30am-3:30pm PST), or email at npic@ace.orst.edu.
