Impact of indigenous microorganisms on Escherichia coli O157:H7 growth in cured compost

Both autoclaving and dry-heat treatments were applied to dairy manure-based compost to achieve target populations of indigenous microorganisms. A 3 strain-mixture of Escherichia coli O157:H7 of ca. 2 log CFU/g was inoculated into acclimated autoclaved compost (AAC) and dry heat-treated compost (DHTC) with different moistures, and stored at 8, 22, or 30 °C. Only selected groups of microorganisms grew in AAC during acclimation, whereas the relative ratio of each group of microorganisms was maintained in DHTC after heat treatment. E. coli O157:H7 grew more in AAC than DHTC in the presence of same level of indigenous mesophiles. However, control compost (no heat treatment) did not support E. coli O157:H7 growth. Our results revealed that both the type and population of indigenous microorganisms is critical for suppressing E. coli O157:H7 growth in compost, and dry-heat treatment can result in a compost product which resembles cured compost with different levels of indigenous microorganisms.