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Fact Sheets > E. coli Safety for Home Juice Makers
E. coli Safety for Home Juice Makers
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Pasteurized juice is safest because it has been heated hot
enough and long enough to kill bacteria. Home juice
makers have become very popular for people who enjoy fresh
juice. There is a risk, however, of contamination of fresh
juice with germs that can cause foodborne illness, such
as E. coli. |
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Common Questions:
What is E. coli?
Escherichia coli (E. coli) are bacteria that normally live
in the intestines of humans and animals. There are many
strains of E. coli bacteria. Most of them are harmless; however, one particular strain, E. coli O157:H7, can cause
serious illness in people, including bloody diarrhea and
damage to kidneys.
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How is E. coli spread when making juice?
E. coli can spread from cattle to people through contaminated
water or soil where fruits and vegetables are grown. If the
foods are contaminated and are not washed before juicing, the
fresh juice could have enough E. coli to cause illness.
An infected person may spread the illness to others by
failure to thoroughly wash hands after using the toilet, or prior to
juice preparation.
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How can I pasteurize juice at home?
E. coli bacteria are not killed by freezing. They are only
killed by heat, such as pasteurization. You can do this at
home by bringing the fresh juice to a boil for 41 seconds cooling it, then keeping it stored in the refrigerator.
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What if I don’t want to pasteurize my juice?
If you do not want to boil your homemade juice, there are
steps you can take to reduce the risks of bacterial
contamination; however, these guidelines cannot be relied upon
to be 100% protective against bacterial contamination.
The
following steps are our recommendations for making fresh juice
at home:
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Wash your hands thoroughly and frequently. Use soap and warm water. Wash hands before starting and
frequently during the cutting and juicing. Wash hands for at
least 20 seconds.
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Wash the fruit thoroughly. Really scrub the fruit. A drop of
detergent in the wash water can help loosen dirt. For an even
higher margin of safety, use a diluted chlorine bleach solution,
because chlorine is an effective disinfectant (Use 1
tablespoon household bleach in a gallon of cool water). Rinse
the fruit really well with clean water after using a detergent
or chlorine wash. Also, if you wash the fruit by immersing it
in water, do this in small batches and change the water
frequently.
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Wash your knives, boards, utensils, and juice-
making equipment thoroughly. Use soap and warm water, then use the diluted chlorine bleach
solution for another disinfecting step (Use 1 tablespoon
household bleach in a gallon of cool water). Rinse well with
clean water afterwards. Make sure the containers you are
putting the fresh juice into are very clean.
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It is best to use sterilized containers, as if making jams or
jellies.
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Food Protection Program
Environmental Health Division
Boulder County Public Health (BCPH)
3450 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80304
(303) 441-1564,
www.BoulderCountyFood.org
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