What produce packing house research can teach you about your cutting board
Sept. 30, 2026
By John Lovett
University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture
Fast Facts
- Study shows impact of cleaning food-contact surfaces before sanitizing
- Isopropyl alcohol-based sanitizer worked almost as well as peracetic acid-based one
- A sanitizer that can be used at home includes bleach in the right concentration
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MAINBAR: Cleaning boosts sanitizer performance against foodborne pathogens
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The same food safety practices that help produce packing houses reduce contamination can also make your cutting board safer.
A recent study by University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture food safety researchers, published by the Center for Produce Safety, examined how foodborne pathogens behave on surfaces ranging from stainless steel to foam and unfinished wood.
While the research was designed to address food safety challenges in produce packing houses, some of its simplest lessons apply just as well at home.
Looking only at salmonella on wood, which many people use for a cutting board, all the sanitizers performed better than cleaning with soap and water alone. Scrubbing the food-contact surface for 30 seconds with soapy water reduced salmonella by 83 percent.
However, an isopropyl alcohol-based sanitizer provided a 99.3-percent reduction of salmonella after the wood was cleaned. The sanitizer, which is a solution of isopropyl alcohol and quaternary ammonium compounds, was nearly as effective as the most effective treatment — a peracetic acid/hydrogen peroxide mixture that reduced salmonella by 99.8 percent.
The difference between an 83-percent and a 99-percent reduction is significant, said Kristen Gibson, leader of the study and director of the Center for Food Safety, a part of the Division of Agriculture’s research arm, the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station.
If a surface started with 1 million bacteria, a 99.8-percent reduction would leave about 2,000. An 83-percent reduction would leave about 170,000, she explained.
The other sanitizer tested was chlorine dioxide, which provided a 93-percent reduction in salmonella on wood after it was cleaned.
For Gibson and her research team, those details are important in produce packing houses. For the rest of us, they can be useful reminders the next time we're chopping vegetables or preparing raw meat for dinner.
Gibson advised consumers who use sanitizers that can be found in retail stores to follow manufacturer recommendations on food-contact surfaces and to remember that cleaning remains an essential first step. She said careful attention is needed when using bleach solutions because “there is a difference for what can be used with and without a water rinse afterwards.” The sanitizers used in the study were at concentrations that did not require an additional water rinse step.
To learn more about ag and food research in Arkansas, visit aaes.uada.edu. Follow the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station on LinkedIn and sign up for our monthly newsletter, the Arkansas Agricultural Research Report. To learn more about the Division of Agriculture, visit uada.edu. To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit uaex.uada.edu.
About the Division of Agriculture
The University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture’s mission is to strengthen agriculture, communities, and families by connecting trusted research to the adoption of best practices. Through the Agricultural Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service, the Division of Agriculture conducts research and extension work within the nation’s historic land grant education system.
The Division of Agriculture is one of 22 entities within the University of Arkansas System. It has offices in all 75 counties in Arkansas and faculty on three system campuses.
Pursuant to 7 CFR § 15.3, the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs and services (including employment) without regard to race, color, sex, national origin, religion, age, disability, marital or veteran status, genetic information, sexual preference, pregnancy or any other legally protected status, and is an equal opportunity institution.
Media Contact:
John Lovett
U of A Division of Agriculture
Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station
(479) 763-5929
jlovett@uada.edu