Inactivation of dairy bacteriophages by commercial sanitizers and disinfectants

Many commercial sanitizers and disinfectants have been used over the years to control microbial contamination but their efficacy on phages is often unknown. Here, 23 commercial chemical products, including 21 food-grade sanitizers were tested against virulent dairy phages. These food-grade chemicals included oxidizing agents, halogenated agents, alcohols, quaternary ammonium compounds, anionic acids, iodine-based acids, and an amphoteric chemical. Phage P008 was first exposed to each sanitizer for 2 and 15min at room temperature and at two different concentrations, namely the lowest and highest no-rinse sanitizing concentrations. Organic matter (whey or milk) was also added to the testing solutions. At the end of the exposure period, the test solution was neutralized and the number of infectious phages was determined by plaque assays. The five most efficient sanitizers against phage P008 (<4 log of inactivation) were then tested against virulent lactococcal phages P008, CB13, AF6, P1532 of the 936 group, P001 (c2), Q54, and 1358 as well as Lactobacillus plantarum phage B1 and Streptococcus thermophilus phage 2972 using the same protocol. The oxidizing agents and the quaternary ammonium compounds were the most efficient against all phages although phages CB13 and P1532 were less sensitive to these chemicals than the other phages. This study may help in the selection of appropriate chemicals for controlling phage contamination in industrial factories and research laboratories.