Efficiency of phage cocktail to reduce Salmonella Typhimurium on chicken meat during low temperature storage

Abstract

Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica serotype Typhimurium is one of the serotypes which causes foodborne illness in human through consumption of contaminated foods. Chicken meat has been identified as a main source of Salmonella transmission. Although chicken meat is recommended to be stored at cold temperatures to control growth of Salmonella, survival of Salmonella under cold conditions is frequently reported. In this study, a phage cocktail was tested for its efficiency to control growth of Salmonella on chicken meat during low temperature storage, particularly at 4 °C and −20 °C. Chicken meat artificially contaminated with Salmonella Typhimurium SSL1-010 was treated with phage cocktail. The treatment resulted in significant reduction of SSL1-010 (0.4–1.0 log CFU/cm2, P < 0.05) throughout 72 h of storage at 4 °C. At −20 °C, phage treatment significantly decreased the number of SSL1-010 by 0.4 log – 0.7 log CFU/cm2 (P < 0.05) during 0–24 h of storage. These findings demonstrated that phage cocktail can be used for controlling growth of SSL1-010 on chicken meat during storage at 4 °C. Besides, phage cocktail can be employed for reduction of Salmonella load during the first hours of storage at −20 °C.