Melons, including watermelons, are one of the main fruit categories in the world. Convenience and taste are important drivers for consumption. mainly from developing countries. It is a competitive market and as a supplier you must keep quality and differentiation in mind.

Introduction

Melons are an important source of phytonutrients. The orange, netted melons (cantaloupes) are among the richest in ascorbic acid and other vitamins and elemental micronutrients (Eitenmiller et al., 1985). Melons are also pleasant to eat due to their water and sugar content (Hakerlerler et al., 1999). Due to the worldwide preference for melons, the growing of these commodities may be a long-term guarantee for profitable agriculture (Karchi, 2000).

However, melons, especially cantaloupes (netted), have become a recurrent source of pathogens causing outbreaks of foodborne disease, especially Salmonella infection. Cantaloupes grow at ground level, thus increasing the potential for fruit surface contamination. Factors such as the potential for pathogens to attach to the porous rind of the melon and internalize (Asta, 1999; Fan et al., 2006) and to form biofilms (Annous et al., 2005), may promote the occurrence of melon-linked outbreaks of foodborne disease. Although the contamination may be restricted to the rind, it can be transferred to the flesh during cutting. Cut cantaloupe is considered to be a potentially hazardous food according to the FDA food code because it is capable of supporting the growth of pathogens due to mild acidity (pH 5.2 to 6.7) and high water activity (0.97 to 0.99) (Bhagwat, 2006). In this chapter, information will be discussed with regards to foodborne disease outbreaks linked to melons, contamination sources and mechanisms of melon contamination, and possible mitigating strategies to reduce the risk of illness associated with consumption of melons.