{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,1]],"date-time":"2026-09-01T01:15:50Z","timestamp":1788225350485,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":30,"publisher":"American Society for Microbiology","issue":"7","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,7]],"date-time":"2026-07-07T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1783382400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"},{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,7]],"date-time":"2026-07-07T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1783382400000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/journals.asm.org\/non-commercial-tdm-license"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100000023","name":"Government of Canada","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["A-base"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["A-base"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100000023","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["journals.asm.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Microbiol Spectr"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,7]]},"abstract":"ABSTRACT<\/jats:title>\n \n \n \n Tahini paste, a low-moisture food, has been implicated in 20 salmonellosis outbreaks since 1995, with over 1,600 reported cases of illness. When used to prepare high-moisture foods (e.g., tahini sauce, hummus), contaminated tahini paste can pose an increased risk to consumers due to potential bacterial growth. This study examined three naturally contaminated tahini samples to assess microbial load and evaluated the impact of preparation and storage practices on\n Salmonella<\/jats:italic>\n replication in tahini sauces made from tahini paste. Naturally contaminated tahini paste harbored low concentrations of\n Salmonella<\/jats:italic>\n (~0.4 most probable number [MPN]\/100 g), with no correlation to background microbiota. Tahini sauces made with artificially contaminated tahini paste and various diluents (water, oil, and lemon juice) with and without garlic powder showed variable\n Salmonella<\/jats:italic>\n recovery at 22\u00b0C and 4\u00b0C.\n Salmonella<\/jats:italic>\n levels in water-based sauces (a\n w<\/jats:sub>\n = 0.9969) increased by 6 logs over 24 h at 22\u00b0C. In contrast, levels in oil-based sauces were stable at 2 log CFU\/g (a\n w<\/jats:sub>\n = 0.1918). Sauces prepared with lemon juice had reduced levels of\n Salmonella<\/jats:italic>\n recovery, with fewer cells recovered at higher concentrations of lemon juice (<1 log CFU\/g with 50% lemon juice [vol\/vol], pH 3.6). At 4\u00b0C,\n Salmonella<\/jats:italic>\n levels in both water- and oil-based sauces remained stable for two weeks at 2 log CFU\/g, whereas no\n Salmonella<\/jats:italic>\n were recovered from lemon juice-based sauce (50% vol\/vol) by one week of storage. Garlic powder (0.7%, wt\/vol) did not affect\n Salmonella<\/jats:italic>\n recovery. These findings support the use of lemon juice and refrigeration by end-users as effective interventions to help mitigate\n Salmonella<\/jats:italic>\n risk in tahini sauces.\n <\/jats:p>\n \n IMPORTANCE<\/jats:title>\n \n Tahini paste, a seed butter made from sesame seeds, has been implicated in numerous salmonellosis illnesses and product recalls. The use of contaminated tahini paste as an ingredient in ready-to-eat sauces and dips such as hummus poses a risk to human health. In order to understand these risks and to provide guidance to consumers, this study examined the influence of recipe ingredients and storage conditions on the growth of\n Salmonella<\/jats:italic>\n in sauces prepared with contaminated tahini. Ingredient choice, particularly the incorporation of an acidulant such as lemon juice, had a strong negative impact on\n Salmonella<\/jats:italic>\n replication, while refrigerated storage of prepared sauces further reduced bacterial recovery. These findings offer practical strategies for consumers and food service professionals to reduce\n Salmonella<\/jats:italic>\n risk and enhance the food safety of products made with tahini paste.\n <\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1128\/spectrum.00520-26","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,28]],"date-time":"2026-05-28T13:00:47Z","timestamp":1779973247000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1128\/asmj-crossmark-policy-page","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Effect of recipe composition and storage conditions on\n Salmonella<\/i>\n survival in sauces made from contaminated tahini paste"],"prefix":"10.1128","volume":"14","author":[{"given":"Mary","family":"Rao","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/05p8nb362","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"Bureau of Microbial and Toxicological Food Safety, Health Canada","place":["Ottawa, Canada"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2240-3180","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Sandeep","family":"Tamber","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/05p8nb362","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"Bureau of Microbial and Toxicological Food Safety, Health Canada","place":["Ottawa, Canada"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"235","reference":[{"key":"e_1_3_3_2_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1089\/fpd.2014.1744"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_3_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1177\/15353141251377305"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_4_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1186\/s12879-025-10629-8"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_5_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3389\/fmicb.2013.00331"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_6_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3390\/microorganisms10112299"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_7_2","first-page":"290","article-title":"Microbiological quality of tehena and development of a generic HACCP plan for its production","volume":"2","author":"Yamani MI","year":"2006","unstructured":"Yamani MI, Isa JK. 2006. Microbiological quality of tehena and development of a generic HACCP plan for its production. World Journal of Agricultural Sciences 2:290\u2013297.","journal-title":"World Journal of Agricultural Sciences"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_8_2","unstructured":"World Health Organization. 2008. Hazard analysis and critical control point generic models for some traditional foods: a manual for the eastern mediterranean region. Available from: https:\/\/iris.who.int\/items\/f468826a-f64a-419c-bfe7-630c4790af6b"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_9_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijfoodmicro.2013.03.010"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_10_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.4315\/0362-028X.JFP-16-507"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_11_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1017\/S0950268800050366"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_12_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.fm.2020.103571"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_13_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.fm.2014.02.020"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_14_2","unstructured":"Health Canada. 2023. MFHPB-20 Isolation and identification of Salmonella from food and environmental samples. Available from: https:\/\/wwwcanadaca\/en\/health-canada\/services\/food-nutrition\/research-programs-analytical-methods\/analytical-methods\/compendium-methods\/methods-microbiological-analysis-foods-compendium-analytical-methodshtml"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_15_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/0890-8508(92)90002-F"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_16_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.5740\/jaoacint.18-0329"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_17_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/S0740-0020(02)00144-2"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_18_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.resmic.2009.10.002"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_19_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/s0168-1605(99)00072-0"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_20_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.fm.2020.103555"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_21_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3382\/japr\/pfv062"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_22_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1006\/fmic.1994.1056"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_23_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijfoodmicro.2021.109474"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_24_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3390\/ani12212974"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_25_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.fm.2023.104462"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_26_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/s0309-1740(02)00047-5"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_27_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3389\/fnut.2023.1142784"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_28_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijfoodmicro.2018.04.033"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_29_2","first-page":"281","article-title":"Synergistic activity of essential oils from herbs and spices used on meat products against food borne pathogens","volume":"12","author":"Garc\u00eda-D\u00edez J","year":"2017","unstructured":"Garc\u00eda-D\u00edez J, Alheiro J, Pinto AL, Falco V, Fraqueza MJ, Patarata L. 2017. Synergistic activity of essential oils from herbs and spices used on meat products against food borne pathogens. Nat Prod Commun 12:281\u2013286.","journal-title":"Nat Prod Commun"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_30_2","unstructured":"Codex Alimentarius Commission. 2018. Code of hygienic practice for low-moisture foods CXC 75-2015. Available from: https:\/\/www.fao.org\/fao-who-codexalimentarius\/sh-proxy\/en\/?lnk=1&url=https%253A%252F%252Fworkspace.fao.org%252Fsites%252Fcodex%252FStandards%252FCXC%2B75-2015%252FCXC_075e.pdf"},{"key":"e_1_3_3_31_2","unstructured":"The Association of Food Beverage and Consumer Products Companies. 2009. Control of Salmonella in low-moisture foods. Available from: http:\/\/graphics8.nytimes.com\/packages\/pdf\/business\/20090515_moss_ingredients\/SalmonellaControlGuidance.pdf"}],"container-title":["Microbiology Spectrum"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/journals.asm.org\/doi\/pdf\/10.1128\/spectrum.00520-26","content-type":"application\/pdf","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"text-mining"},{"URL":"https:\/\/journals.asm.org\/doi\/pdf\/10.1128\/spectrum.00520-26","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,1]],"date-time":"2026-09-01T00:59:10Z","timestamp":1788224350000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/journals.asm.org\/doi\/10.1128\/spectrum.00520-26"}},"subtitle":[],"editor":[{"given":"Erik F. Y.","family":"Hom","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"editor"}]}],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,7]]},"references-count":30,"journal-issue":{"issue":"7","published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,7]]}},"alternative-id":["10.1128\/spectrum.00520-26"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1128\/spectrum.00520-26","relation":{},"ISSN":["2165-0497"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2165-0497","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,7]]},"assertion":[{"value":"2026-02-10","order":0,"name":"received","label":"Received","group":{"name":"publication_history","label":"Publication History"}},{"value":"2026-04-16","order":2,"name":"accepted","label":"Accepted","group":{"name":"publication_history","label":"Publication History"}},{"value":"2026-05-28","order":3,"name":"published","label":"Published","group":{"name":"publication_history","label":"Publication History"}}],"article-number":"e00520-26"}}