Bio-Mapping of Microbial Indicators and Pathogen Quantitative Loads in Commercial Broiler Processing Facilities in South America

David A Vargas; Gabriela K Betancourt-Barszcz; Daniela R Chávez-Velado; Angelica Sánchez; Rossy Bueno López; Marcos X Sanchez-Plata

doi:10.3390/foods12193600

Bio-Mapping of Microbial Indicators and Pathogen Quantitative Loads in Commercial Broiler Processing Facilities in South America

Foods. 2023 Sep 28;12(19):3600. doi: 10.3390/foods12193600.

Authors

David A Vargas¹, Gabriela K Betancourt-Barszcz¹, Daniela R Chávez-Velado¹, Angelica Sánchez¹, Rossy Bueno López¹, Marcos X Sanchez-Plata¹

Affiliation

¹ Department of Animal and Food Sciences, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX 79409, USA.

Abstract

A bio-mapping study was conducted with the aim of creating a microbiological baseline on indicator organisms and pathogens in commercial broiler processing facilities located in a country in South America. Whole chicken carcass and wing rinses were collected from five stages of the poultry processing line: live receiving (LR), rehanger (R), post-evisceration (PE), post-chilling (PC), and wings (W). Rinses (n = 150) were enumerated using the MicroSnap™ system for total viable counts (TVC) and Enterobacteriaceae (EB), while the BAX^®-System-SalQuant^® and BAX^®-System-CampyQuant™ were used for Salmonella and Campylobacter, respectively. TVC and EB were significantly different between stages at the processing line (p < 0.01). There was a significant reduction from LR to PC for both microbial indicators. TVC and EB counts increased significantly from PC to W. Salmonella counts at PC were significantly different from the other stages at the processing line (p = 0.03). Campylobacter counts were significantly higher than the other stages at PC (p < 0.01). The development of bio-mapping baselines with microbial indicators showed consistent reduction up to the post-chilling stage, followed by an increase at the wings sampling location. The quantification of pathogens demonstrates that prevalence analysis as a sole measurement of food safety is not sufficient to evaluate the performance of processing operations and sanitary dressing procedures in commercial processing facilities.

Keywords: Campylobacter spp. enumeration; Salmonella enumeration; microbial baseline; poultry bio-mapping.

Grants and funding

This research was funded by the International Center for Food Industry Excellence (ICFIE) at Texas Tech University and was supported by contributions from Hygiena.