Balsamic vinegar from Modena: An easy and effective approach to reduce Listeria monocytogenes from lettuce

Listeria reductions observed for balsamic vinegar are similar or higher than those of chlorine-based sanitizers evaluated in other studies with lettuce. In the case of balsamic vinegar solutions, Listeria inhibition followed a linear reduction according to the model: Log (N/N0) = −4.09 × balsamic vinegar proportion % (v/v) − 0.13; R² = 0.95. Balsamic vinegar washings may be a promising method for reducing other foodborne pathogens present in produce or other foods, at home and retail environments.