Microbial quality of agricultural water in Central Florida.

ABSTRACT: The microbial quality of water that comes into the edible portion of produce is believed to directly relate to the safety of produce, and metrics describing indicator organisms are commonly used to ensure safety. The US FDA Produce Safety Rule (PSR) sets very specific microbiological water quality metrics for agricultural water that contacts the harvestable portion of produce. Validation of these metrics for agricultural water is essential for produce safety. Water samples (500 mL) from six agricultural ponds were collected during the 2012/2013 and 2013/2014 growing seasons (46 and 44 samples respectively, 540 from all ponds). Microbial indicator populations (total coliforms, generic Escherichia coli, and enterococci) were enumerated, environmental variables (temperature, pH, conductivity,

SUBMITTER: Topalcengiz Z 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5388333 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature