What must happen to meat like jerky before dehydrating to ensure safety against surviving pathogenic bacteria?

Cooking the meat to $160^{ ext{F}}$ ($71^{ ext{C}}$) or poultry to $165^{ ext{F}}$ ($74^{ ext{C}}$) before dehydrating

When utilizing drying as a preservation method for meats, simply removing moisture is insufficient for guaranteeing pathogen elimination; an initial high-heat step is essential for safety. For meats intended to become jerky, they must first be cooked to an internal temperature of $160^{ ext{F}}$ ($71^{ ext{C}}$), and poultry must reach $165^{ ext{F}}$ ($74^{ ext{C}}$). This initial cooking step is necessary to destroy most existing harmful bacteria. If meat is dried without reaching these kill temperatures first, surviving pathogenic bacteria can actually become heat-resistant during the subsequent slow drying process, creating a significant and potentially deadly health hazard in the final preserved product.