Clostridium botulinum is Inactivated by Germicidal UV Light

What is Clostridium botulinum?

In 1895, Emile van Ermengem discovered the rod-shaped bacteria Clostridium botulinum when examining a home-cured ham suspected to be the source of a botulism outbreak. Sausage poisoning was a common occurrence in 19^th century Germany, giving rise to the scientific name botulinum, as the Latin word for sausage is botulus.

The bacteria themselves are not harmful, but the toxins they produce as they multiply are extremely lethal, attacking the nervous system of the human body. Botulism, though rare, is a potentially fatal disease. Because of the diversity in its genetic composition, these bacteria have been classified into six distinct varieties, named according to the roman numerals I-VI, groups I and II being those most commonly linked to human illnessopen_in_new.

Sources of Clostridium Spores

Clostridium botulinum spores are prevalent in the environment, such as soil, rivers, and sea water. As a result, vegetables and potatoes that grow near to the ground frequently host the bacteria. They also form in foods, especially in home-canned or home-bottled foods where proper food processing does not occur.

Occasionally, commercially prepared foods are involved. Bulging food cans are a result of gas-induced pressure from the bacteria’s spore growth, which is accelerated in a low-oxygen environment. Ready-to-eat foods in low oxygen-packaging are more frequently involved in cases of foodborne botulism. There have also been reported incidents of the bacteria spores being found in dairy products, particularly in powder formopen_in_new. Other foods vulnerable to infection are meat, poultry, seafood, low-acid preserved vegetables, garlic infused oil, honey, and corn syrup.

Help Prevent Foodborne Infection from Clostridium botulinum

At Home

• Don’t home can or bottle low-acid foods such as asparagus, green beans, beets, corn and potatoes.
• Follow safe home-canning instructions as recommended by the CDCopen_in_new and USDAopen_in_new.
• Refrigerate any canned or pickled foods immediately after using.
• Throw away any homemade oils after 4 days.
• Do not consume commercially canned food that is expired or has damaged cans.
• Properly store vacuum-packaged meats in the refrigerator or freezer.

For Food Processing Facilities

Properly processed canned foods, according to these preventative measures, should not contain viable C. botulinum.

• During holding or storage, maintaining proper food temperaturesopen_in_new — above 57°C/135°F for hot food, and below 5°C/41°F for cold food.
• Washing hands, utensils, and kitchen surfaces that touch food, using hot soapy water before preparation, after contact with raw meat or seafood, and after using the bathroom.
• Acidification
• Reduction of moisture levels
• Heat processing (the most common method of destruction)
• Reduction of microbial contamination levels (Learn more about UV-C disinfection below.)

Processing Facilities Get More Protection with UV Disinfection

Clostridium botulinum: Classification & UV-C Dose for Inactivation

Organism:	Alternate Name:	Type:	Disease:	UV Dose*:
Clostridium botulinum	C. botulinum	Bacteria	Botulism	10.7 mJ/cm2

* Nominal Ultraviolet dosage necessary to inactivate better than 99% of microorganisms. See sources below.

People at High Risk for Infection

You’re more likely to contract an infection from Clostridium botulinum if you:

• Eat food listed above that may be contaminated
• Are an infant (their intestines are not fully developed with the proper defenses against their growth and toxicity)
• Have gastrointestinal diseaseopen_in_new
• Have an open wound (in rare cases, they can become infected with the bacteria)

Clostridium botulinum Symptoms

According to the World Health Organizationopen_in_new, Botulinum toxins block nerve functions and can lead to respiratory and muscular paralysis. The most common symptoms associated with Clostridium botulinum are as follows:

Possible Complications from Clostridium botulinum

Untreated Clostridium botulinum infections can cause:

• weakness in the neck and arms
• full paralysis of muscles
• difficulty breathing
• death

Sources on Clostridium botulinum

The above information can be found on the following pages.

• WHO: Botulismopen_in_new
• CDC: Botulismopen_in_new
• USDA Food Safety Information: C. botulinumopen_in_new
• Bacteriological Analytical Manual, Chapter 17: Clostridium botulinumopen_in_new
• University of Florida: Preventing Foodborne Illness: C. botulinumopen_in_new
• University of Wisconsin: Food Research Instituteopen_in_new

Dosage Source

Inactivation of Group I and Group II Clostridium botulinum spores by ultraviolet irradiation in water. International Journal of Food Microbiology, Volume 395. June 2023. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2023.110191, 2023.

Learn More, Shop & Contact Our Specialists

Since 1963, we’ve been engineering and manufacturing germicidal ultraviolet equipment to neutralize harmful microorganisms in water, in air, and on surfaces. Visit these helpful pages:

Shop at AtlanticUltraviolet.com

• Shop UV-C Water & Liquid Disinfectionopen_in_new
• Shop UV-C Air & Surface Disinfectionopen_in_new
• Shop STER-L-RAY^® UV-C Lampsopen_in_new
• Shop Safety Productsopen_in_new

Contact Us

• Call (631) 273-0500, Monday – Friday 7am to 6pm EST
• Email Sales@AtlanticUV.com