![Listeria in pre packed salad. Sample prep in Seward Stomacher®](https://www.seward.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2001/03/Listeria-in-pre-packed-salad.-Sample-prep-in-Seward-Stomacher®-1024x683.jpg)
A Stomacher® 400 was used to test salad samples as part of the development and evaluation of a 16S ribosomal DNA Array-Based Approach for describing complex microbial communities in ready-to-eat vegetable salads packed in a modified atmosphere. The practical implications of these results are that microbial communities in ready-to-eat vegetable salads can be diverse and that microbial composition is dependent both on the origin of the raw material and on the storage conditions.