September/October 2023 - 19

WWW.CENTERFORPRODUCESAFETY.ORG CPS
is over. His research* validates the
importance of keeping an open mind
during an investigation and having a
rigorous sanitation program for dry
areas; I recommend reading this study
for specific advice.
DFV's sister company imports fresh
fruit, so I noted a University of California,
Davis team's new findings* that LM can
survive (though not grow) on wax-coated
fruit; pathogen loads decreased more on
stored waxed fruit than unwaxed fruit
over time. This work demonstrates the
importance of proper manufacturing,
handling, cleaning and sanitation
to prevent waxes, waxing equipment
and surfaces from becoming crosscontamination
vectors.
While some CPS projects may not
involve your industry segment, the
results may. I am watching Texas A&M's
Alejandro Castillo, Ph.D.'s ongoing study
of avocado dry storage and sanitation;
those findings should be applicable to
our dry storage and sanitation.
I'm also watching a project by Spain's
" It's important for us to stay on the leading edge of
available research, so our work is first and foremost
preventive instead of reactive. "
Pilar Truchado, Ph.D., testing* whether
bacteriophages - viruses that target
specific bacteria - can control LM on
leafy greens. This would be a truly novel
intervention. We know bacteriophages
are effective against pathogens, now
let's figure out how they fit into fresh
produce safety.
As a member of Center for Produce
Safety's Technical Committee guiding
CPS's fresh produce food-safety research
program, I've seen how important it is for
our industry to partner with researchers. We
can teach researchers about our products
and practices to help them design studies
that better answer our questions; and we
can leverage and learn from their expertise.
The more outreach we do with
researchers, the more applicable their
science is to us. To become a research
collaborator, contact CPS by email at
info@centerforproducesafety.org.
To learn more about
these and
other CPS research projects, vi si t
centerforproducesafety.org/fundedresearch-projects.php.
Amy
Parks, Ph.D., is director of food
safety and quality assurance innovations
and regulatory compliance for Dole
Food Company, and a member of CPS's
Technical Committee. She earned her
Ph.D. in food microbiology/food safety
from Texas Tech University. Prior to Dole,
she has held various roles supporting
multiple sectors of the food industry
including Schreiber Foods, Merieux
NutriSciences and McCain Foods.
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September/October 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of September/October 2023
