Raw fruits and vegetables, especially fresh-cut leafy greens, are
increasingly being recognized as the foremost transmitting vehicles
of E. coli O157:H7 [5]. Although, fresh produce can be contaminated
at any point along the farm-to-consumption handling chain, the
field application of raw manure or contaminated irrigation water in
the primary production phase is a principal route of E. coli O157:H7
contamination [6–8]. Hence, it is critical to prevent fresh produce
from preharvest contamination in order to achieve the delivery of
microbiologically safe produce to consumers [5]. Knowledge of the
behavior of E. coli O157:H7 in plants growing in substrates like soil
is important to develop strategies for minimizing contamination.