Bacterial Pathogens in Chicken Meat-444
Bacterial Pathogens in Chicken Meat-444
Bacterial Pathogens in Chicken Meat-444
PhD Scholar, Central Avian Research Institute, Izatnagar, Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh, India-243 122.
2
Abstract: Chicken is a nutritious, healthy food which is low in fat and cholesterol compared to other meats but an
excellent source of protein. Meat must be of a high microbiological quality in order to ensure that the consumer
receives a product that is not spoilt or does not carry food-borne disease. Food borne diseases associated with the
consumption of poultry meat and its processed products are of public health significance worldwide. This paper
reviewed information on the sources of microbial contamination, contamination of poultry with major pathogenic
microorganisms, the consequences of this contamination to human health, prevalence of microbes in poultry meat
and products in the world and in India.
Keywords: poultry carcass, microbes, chicken meat, microbial contamination.
I. INTRODUCTION
The term chicken meat principally refers either whole carcasses or parts of the carcass or boned out meat of the species
Gallus gallus. The poultry has gained the acceptance by consumers and growing 10-15% annually. The chicken meat
contributes about 37% meat to total production and number one contributors. The growth is expected more in near future.
This might be due to popularity, price, easy availability, no religious taboos, highly digestible, tasty and low-calorie food
often recommended by nutritionists over other meats. The popularity of this product is due to sensory and dietary, as well
as economic considerations. The consumption of poultry products is increasing every year and consumers wants a safe
and quality product, without the presence of pathogenic microorganisms. Thus, it is essential that the poultry industry
achieves this goal. In most developed and some developing countries today, high-quality poultry meat is often less costly
than other types of meat. This is due mainly to the revolutionary industrialization of the poultry industry in the last 30
years, which has changed poultry meat from a rather limited product, only available to a limited group of consumers, into
a popular and inexpensive product within everyones budget. Special attention in poultry meat production is paid to the
fact that live animals are hosts to a large number of different microorganisms residing on their skin, feathers or in the
alimentary tract. During slaughter most of these microorganisms are eliminated, but subsequent contamination is possible
at any stage of the production process, from feather plucking, evisceration, and washing to storage by cooling or freezing
(Mead, 1989). Microorganisms from the environment, equipment and operators hands can contaminate meat. Hardly 5
per cent of the poultry meat produced in India is from organized processing units whereas, the rest is from the birds
slaughtered in unorganized sector (retail shops) where due to poor hygiene there is ample scope for contamination (Kumar
et al., 2001).
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V. SOURCES OF CONTAMINATION
The possible sources of contamination of Campylobacter spp. in poultry meat before slaughter found to be examining
samples of feathers, cloaca swabs, litter swabs, transport coops, rinse water from coop washing equipment, and chicken
breast supports in the slaughter line just before stunning (Franchin et al., 2005). The samples were collected from eight
broiler houses and from eight different producers, from a poultry integration system in southern Brazil. The study was
carried out over a 12-month period, and each broiler house was sampled in three consecutive flocks, for a total of 24
flocks/broiler house. Campylobacter was found in 79.2% of the feather samples, followed by cloacal swabs (75.0%) and
transport coop (50.0%), litter (37.5%), breast support (33.3%) and coop rinse water (25.0%) samples.
Although chickens may excrete 104 to 108 Campylobacter cells per gram of feces, they are asymptomatic (Schoeni and
Doyle, 1992). It is believed that the source of bacterial contamination of poultry meat is essentially the intestine or gut
content which may come in contact with carcasses already in the broiler house and during transport and slaughter, either
directly or indirectly, through a vehicle such as transport and processing equipment.
High levels of bacterial cross-contamination may occur especially during defeathering and water chilling, with intestinal
contamination apparently being the only source. However, these levels may also increase during evisceration of the
carcasses, washing and processing due to contamination by personnel (Oosterom et al., 1983 and Wempe et al., 1989).
Although Campylobacter has been isolated from different body parts of the chicken such as cloaca (Carvalho et al.,
2000), carcasses, feathers and crops (Nielsen et al., 1997). Thermophilic Campylobacter were detected in 22 of 24
chicken batch samples destined to slaughter, corresponding to a 91.7% rate of contaminated batches. Machado and
Carvalho (2000) who detected Campylobacter spp. in about 57% and 42% of samples, respectively. Berrang et al. (2000)
found 5.4 log10 CFU/g in the feathers and 3.8 log10 CFU/g in the skin of 18 chicken samples examined at the end of the
bleeding tunnel, but before scalding. De Zutter (2000) studied 12 chicken batches of broiler flocks and the possibility of
cross-contamination during transit to slaughter, and found that two batches which were initially free of Campylobacter
spp. became infected with the organism when they reached the slaughter stage, indicating that infection occurred during
transportation.
Their presence in the litter, coops, feathers and breast support renders the chicken meat vulnerable to cross contamination,
thus increasing the risk of the presence of this pathogen in chicken meat and products.
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Sources of Samples
MSC
RSC
SSC
6.280.16a
6.230.10a
3.030.16 b
Psychrophilic Count
6.710.07 a
5.630.25b
2.820.11 c
Coliform count
5.120.34 a
4.970.33a
2.030.41 b
2.520.07a
2.260.07 b
1.870.13b
Barbudhe et al, (2003) recorded high mesophilic (log7.24 cfu/g) and yeast and mould counts (log 6.86 cfu/g) in poultry
meat sold in Goa. Similarly high microbial counts of log 7.61, 5.85 and 7.10 cfu/g for Psychrophilic Count, Coliform and
YMC were reported in fresh chicken meat obtained from retail outlets of Pondicherry (Mukhopadhyay et al., 2004).
VII. CONCLUSION
It is concluded that contamination of poultry and poultry products should be prevented during handling, slaughter and
processing to protect the public from infections and diseases. From this review out of 2030 chicken meat samples
examined in different parts of India 759 was positive for pathogens. This review revealed that the Indian chicken meat
contains pathogenic bacteria like Salmonella spp. (33.16%), Campylobacter spp. (95%), Escherichia coli (70.22%),
Clostridium spp. (13.88%), Listeria monocytogenes (15%) and Staphylococcus aureus (11.25%).
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