Trends in the microbial contamination of bovine, ovine and swine carcasses in three small-scale abattoirs in central Italy: A four-year monitoring

Abstract

The microbial contamination of animal carcasses with respect to the limits established by Regulation (EC) No. 2073/2005 was investigated. Bovine, ovine, and swine carcasses (n=536 samples) from three small-scale abattoirs were sampled using abrasive sponges and tested for aerobic colony counts (ACC) and Enterobacteriaceae in the period 2010–2013.Mean ACC values reached 1.96logcfu/cm2 on bovine carcasses and 2.27logcfu/cm2 on both swine and ovine carcasses; Enterobacteriaceae counts of 0.01, 0.20 and 0.27logcfu/cm2 were found for bovine, swine and ovine carcasses, respectively. Abattoir 1 showed the highest values of ACC; no differences among abattoirs were highlighted for Enterobacteriaceae. Compared with swine and ovine carcasses, bovine carcasses showed significantly lower means for both ACC and Enterobacteriaceae. The data collected indicated that the management of the three abattoirs met high quality standards, thereby proving that it is feasible to achieve good microbiological quality in abattoirs when adequate Good Hygiene Practices are applied.