S294 - Participant Bio

Gerry Sapers

Institution : ARS-ERRC

Commodities : apple and melon

Research topics : Determination of sources of pathogenic contamination during production, packing and processing of produce and factors leading to internalization of pathogenic bacteria in contaminated produce. Selection of E. coli O157:H7 surrogate for intervention studies in a pilot plant environment. Develop novel new technologies for produce decontamination. Development of a biosafety level-2 pilot plant facilty for evaluation of the developed novel decontamination technologies (Cooperative agreement with Penn State University). Research on novel intervention technologies in BL-2 facility, using pathogenic bacteria. Research will be extended to cover other fresh fruits and vegetables. Current pathogen of interest is E. coli O157:H7. Working with 14 strains of E. coli and two strains of Salmonella.

e-mail: gsapers@arserrc.gov

	[Link to Home Page] Current Officers: Past Chair: Yuagang Luo (LuoY@ba.ars.usda.gov) Chair: Peter Toivanen (ToivonenP@AGR.GC.CA) Vice Chair: Aubrey F. Mendonca (amendon@iastate.edu) Secretary: Xuetong Fan (xfan@errc.ars.usda.gov) Webmaster: Mary Reed (postharvest@ucdavis.edu)