The Abuela Project

The goal of the Abuela Project is to reduce the incidence of salmonellosis caused by the bacterium Salmonella Typhimurium. This particular serogroup of Salmonella bacteria are often found in 'queso fresco', a cheese made from unpasteurized (raw) cow milk; this food is commonly consumed by Hispanic residents of Yakima County, Washington.

From 1992-1996, there was an increase in the incidence of Salmonella illness due to Salmonella Typhimurium in Yakima County. As a result, multiple agencies came together and initiated an intervention aimed to reduce the rising number of salmonella cases in the community. The intervention had three components: a mass media campaign, newsletter articles aimed at dairy farmers that warned about the risks of selling raw milk, and workshops that introduced a queso fresco recipe made with pasteurized milk. The workshops were conducted by older Hispanic women, abuelas, from the community, and thus this portion of the intervention was called the Abuela Project.

The traditional queso fresco recipe was first modified by dairy scientists at Washington State University to increase shelf life, improve ease of preparation, and inhibit the growth of harmful microorganisms. The recipe was then tested to ensure adequate flavor and texture by Hispanic residents of Yakima County. Abuelas were trained in how to make the new queso fresco recipe in a hands-on and interactive class, after which they signed a contract and promised to teach at least 15 additional community members how to safely make queso fresco using the new recipe.

The goal of the Abuela Project is to reduce the number of cases of salmonellosis caused by Salmonella Typhimurium due to consumption of queso fresco made from raw-milk in Yakima County, Washington.

Questionnaires were collected before the workshops and again 6 months after the workshops were conducted. Less than half of the participants said that they made queso fresco with pasteurized milk before the workshops, while all participants reported that they used pasteurized milk to make queso fresco after the intervention, a significant change (p<0.01).

The increase in the number of salmonellosis cases due to Salmonella Typhimurium observed during the period 1992-1996 did not continue. After the Abuela project was implemented, the case rate returned to pre-1992 levels.