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Small Birds, Minimal Waste: Assessing Food Safety Risks
- A new study by researchers from the University of California, Davis finds that small birds like bluebirds and swallows pose minimal risk of foodborne pathogens. The study, published in the Journal of Applied Ecology, states that a view of food safety risks and wild birds can help farmers manage farms for crop production, biodiversity conservation, and food safety. Up until now, growers have been advised to remove natural habitats to prevent wildlife and foodborne pathogens from affecting crops. The study states that by erecting nest boxes to attract beneficial insect-eating birds like bluebirds and swallows, the risk of wildlife feces getting onto crops is reduced.
- The research involved assessing food safety risks from nearly 10,000 birds across 29 lettuce farms in California’s Central Coast through field and greenhouse experiments, bird surveys, and point counts. Fecal samples were collected following turkeys, bluebirds, and other wild birds at the UC Davis Student Farm and nearby Putah Creek. The study found that pathogens in birds will survive longer in larger poop than in smaller ones.
- The authors also found that E. coli survived longer on lettuce itself than on soil or plastic mulch. But they note that 90% of birds observed on the farms were small and pooped mostly on the ground, where pathogens perish quickly. By avoiding no-harvest buffers when food safety risks are low, growers of leafy greens could harvest about 10% more of their fields. The industry has been concerned about birds for a while; however, pathogenic E. coli and Salmonella are rare in farmland birds.
- The study contributes to a growing body of research that suggests growers do not need to remove habitat to improve food safety. Through the use of science-based methods, growers can be given permission to conserve the habitat around farms and promote farm biodiversity, alongside ensuring crop production and food safety. The study opens up new strategies for growers to better balance conservation and food safety risks.
- The study was funded through the Center for Produce Safety, the California Department of Food and Agriculture, and the US Department of Agriculture. The research team comprised of lead author Austin Spence, a postdoctoral researcher in the UC Davis Department of Wildlife, Fish, and Conservation Biology; Jeffery McGarvey and SangIn Lee at the USDA Agricultural Research Service; Olivia Smith at Michigan State University; Elissa Olimpi at Conservation Science Partners; Wentao Yang and Meirun Zhang, undergraduates at UC Davis; and senior author Daniel Karp, a UC Davis professor.
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