Both tanks are connected to the treatment chamber by short lengths of 3-inch tubing. In 1 second, this machine takes the chicken through a vacuum to withdraw all air, flushes it with steam, treats it with a burst of steam heated to 290 o F to kill harmful bacteria, and finally vacuum-cools itall without cooking the surface. Removing the air before treating with steam actually makes the treatment more effective, since the air would otherwise slow down the rate at which the steam heats the meat surface. We got similar results with beef and pork. However, we think that more pathogens can be killed on beef and pork by using higher temperatures for shorter times and still not cook the meat.
Future work focuses on adapting the process to industry.
This equipment could be added at the slaughterhouse without increasing costs more than a cent per pound. Doris Stanley is on the Agricultural Research Service Information Staff. Click here to see this issue's table of contents.