Inhibition of Salmonella typhimurium on agar medium and poultry skin by ultraviolet energy.

Ultraviolet radiation (UV) was effective in destroying Salmonella typhimurium on agar plates and poultry skin. Agar plates inoculated with varying numbers of colony-forming units (CFU) of S. typhimurium (1.2 x 10(2) to 1.7 x 10(9) were subjected to different doses of UV light to determine optimal killing. Poultry skin was also inoculated with varying CFU of S. typhimurium per 2 cm2 of skin and subjected to UV light. UV light treatment of inoculated agar plates revealed almost complete elimination (99.9%) of S. typhimurium at 2,000 microW x s x cm(-2). Bacterial reduction was less effective on the surface of poultry skin when a 80.5% reduction in S. typhimurium was obtained at 2,000 microW x s x cm(-2).