ARM & HAMMER has announced two new offerings to help poultry operators manage risk of microbial contamination, including Salmonella, in both pre- and postharvest settings. The new products, introduced to the poultry industry at the 2019 International Production and Processing Expo, are:

  • Finalyse SAL, featuring phage technology to safely control Salmonella during processing
  • CLARIFECT to disinfect poultry drinking water lines and remove biofilm deposits in water transfer lines

Reducing Salmonella risk
New Finalyse SAL gives poultry processors an effective and flexible tool against Salmonella. Applied to poultry carcasses and parts, Finalyse SAL bolsters existing antimicrobial interventions.

Finalyse SAL is a phage technology, which provides a unique line of defense by safely targeting specific bacterial hosts and making them ineffective. Their host-specific mode of action means phages are safe for use in food processing and they also avoid worker exposure to harmful antimicrobial chemicals.

“This is a true breakthrough in the poultry industry’s fight against Salmonella. Finalyse SAL can help the industry prevent food-borne illness, maintain consumer confidence in product safety and reduce losses from Salmonella recalls,” says Scott Druker, general manager, Arm & Hammer Animal and Food Production.

How phage technology works
Host-specific phages replicate only within a targeted bacterium, in this case Salmonella. When the phages in Finalyse SAL encounter Salmonella, they attach to a specific receptor on the cell surface and begin to replicate rapidly until the host cell wall bursts and new phages are released to encounter and destroy other Salmonella cells.

Because these phages only target Salmonella, they naturally degrade without the host cell. Their host range will not target or affect humans, yet is highly effective against Salmonella.

In a study at a commercial turkey processing facility, Finalyse SAL achieved 100 percent control of Salmonella in ground turkey. In the study, turkey backs, thighs, drums and boneless wings were used to create two 2,000-pound combos, one for the control group and one for the treatment group.

To replicate real-world conditions, the combos were shipped more than 100 miles to another processing location. There, the processor held the combos in a cooler before applying Finalyse SAL in a continuous online pathogen eliminator (COPE). The combos were then shipped back to the original location and held in a cooler before grinding. Samples were tested at each step, including after shipment, treatment and grinding.

Test results demonstrated the effectiveness of Finalyse SAL:

  • 100 percent of samples in the control group, without Finalyse SAL treatment, tested positive for Salmonella
  • All samples in the Finalyse SAL treatment group tested negative for Salmonella, except one sample of boneless wings that tested positive prior to grinding. The corresponding sample tested negative after grinding

“ARM & HAMMER’s Passport Food Safety Solutions team first introduced phage technology to the meat processing industry over a decade ago,” says Druker “The team’s first product reduced E. coli bacteria entering processing plants through application to the hide of beef cattle. We are excited to bring this proven phage technology to the poultry industry to help ensure safety for consumers and the food supply.”

Finalyse SAL is registered for use in the United States, with other registrations pending.

EPA-registered disinfectant
Formerly known as SWG Biocide, CLARIFECT is registered by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as a disinfectant, unlike many other products on the market that are classified as cleaning products. While a cleaning product removes soils from a surface, a disinfectant destroys or inactivates bacteria, fungi and viruses.

“CLARIFECT gives operators the peace of mind that comes with a disinfectant product. It effectively and economically removes bacteria to ensure clear, high-quality water for farms, hatcheries and other poultry applications,” says Druker.

The product removes and controls biofilm deposits and other organic contaminates in multiple applications, in addition to poultry drinking water systems. These include poultry fogging and misting systems, hatchery swamp coolers and cooling towers, evaporative cool cells, and many other industrial and non-potable water applications.

With no premixing required, CLARIFECT makes it easy to disinfect water lines during poultry house changeover. It effectively disinfects gram-negative organisms with a low-volume application, injected at 1:128, or 1 ounce of CLARIFECT per gallon of water.

CLARIFECT is currently registered for use in the United States, with other registrations pending.

For more information visit www.AHanimalnutrition.com.