A Microbial Survey Of Office Coffee Cups And Effectiveness Of The FreshCUP™ System For Reduction Of Bacteria.

Charles P. Gerba, Ph.D
Ralph Meer,  Ph.D
Carlos E. Enriquez, Ph.D
University of Arizona

Summary:

The purpose of this study was to assess the concentration and types of bacteria found in coffee cups and food preparation areas in offices.
The  concentration and occurrence of coliform bacteria in office coffee preparation  areas was found to be greater than that found in household kitchens - The numbers of bacteria in used coffee cups averaged 1.0 X 105 colony  forming units (CFU) and ranged from 5.4 x 104 to 3.0 x 105 CFU.

Bacterial types identified in the cups included Enterobacter cloacae,  Enterobacter aggoerans, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Citrobacter frundii, Serratia  liquefacians, Serratia macesans, and Acinetobacter caloaceticus.
While these  bacteria do not usually cause illness in normal healthy individuals, they may cause infections in immunocomprised individuals.
Sixty percent of the cups  contained coliform bacteria which is greater than the 10% observed in household  cutlery and cookery.

Wiping the cups with a moist sponge or dish cloth result in significant  contamination of the cups with bacteria (7.3 X 104 to 5.5 X  107 in a lO-ml rinse of the cup) including coliform bacteria and E.  coli.
It was demonstrated that the FreshCup system completely eliminated coliform bacteria and E. coli presence in the cups.
In addition total  bacteria numbers were reduced by greater than 99.9% or completely eliminated.

Testing Sanitization Power At  BioScience Technology Laboratories

IN VIVO Test

This test checked the sanitizing power of the detergent and the cup-washer unit in 'real operating conditions' (Report 3180/ R 4416).

Ceramic drinking cups were contaminated on the inside and outside by the mouth of a healthy user. A specimen was taken from every cup before and after washing in order to count bacteria colonies.

The purpose of this test was not to identify bacteria, only to test general sanitizing power for all types of bacteria found on cups - working on the assumption that these bacteria are also present in the mouth's  natural flora.

Conclusion:
On both cycles inspected, the  sanitizing of cups after the washing program was found to be completely effective.

IN VITRO Test

The purpose of this test was to inspect sanitizing power of the detergent and  cup-washing unit for a spectrum of 'problematic' micro-organisms cultivated for the test in laboratory conditions (Report 3876 R-5523).

Concentration of micro-organisms before washing was 1,000,000 colonies per milliliter.

Sanitizing Power tested:

on short cycle (contact time - 5 seconds)
on long cycle (contact time -  30 seconds)

Conclusion:

The FreshCUP™ 1.2 BIOCLEANSER has total sanitizing power both on the long and  short cycles and is effective against all micro-organisms on the above list as well as a long list of additional micro-organisms tested abroad.