Butcher Shops Research Articles

Poem for the Parlor

Poem for the Parlor Catherine Pierce (bio) Oh parlor, you den of drapes and darkness,you ruched velvet, you settee and divan,you oak-ached and candle-licked fever dream, let us faint into the arms of the couchyou've crafted for our frailty, let it catch and cradlewhen we're overcome by the fireplace's musky plumes, the gentleman's wink.Let us play the pianoforte with vicious precision,all our anger coiled in our hair. Outside the snow falls, the lamps are lit.Outside someone is tossing scraps to the dogsthat gather behind the butcher shop, but we don't eat scraps, and our dogs are tiny,nearly crocheted. They warm themselveson our narrow laps and we all pretend comfort. Outside someone is boarding a train,someone is locking a shop. Outside womenare teetering through alleys, their breath hanging in the cold, but inside we are hothoused,utterly safe. Inside are your ruby hangingsand firelight, your massive mirror and gilt, our wasp waists and tamped-down laughter,our well-turned ankles, those small, bony soulsof discretion. In your corner, a fine brass cage, all gleam and climbing ivy.Inside it, our unhappiness perches.It hops and pecks. It sings all night. [End Page 89] Catherine Pierce Catherine Pierce's most recent book of poems is The Tornado Is the World (2016). She is also the author of The Girls of Peculiar (2012) and Famous Last Words (2008), all from Saturnalia Books. Her poems have appeared in Best American Poetry, Boston Review, Southern Review, Ploughshares, and elsewhere. She co-directs the creative writing program at Mississippi State University. Copyright © 2017 Middlebury College Publications

Stavovi hrvatskih potrošača mesa prema proizvodima proizvedenima u skladu s dobrobiti životinja

Croatian meat consumer attitudes towards animal welfare-friendly products and production Decision making processes in the context of agri-food policy and agri-food industry cannot be completed without involving consumers. The concept of animal welfare-friendly production in Croatia is at the beginning of its development. Also, there is no sufficient information about Croatian meat consumer attitudes towards meat produced in animal welfare-friendly systems. The purpose of this study is to gain information about buying behaviour of meat consumers when buying red meat and consumer knowledge about animal welfare production in general. The consumers’ attitudes were collected by means of face-to-face semi-structured interviews on a sample of 187 meat consumers in the butcher shops and at farmers’ market. The data obtained from the survey were analysed with uni-variate analysis, chi-square test and correlation analysis. The findings suggested gender to have significant impact on the opinion regarding animal welfare (p<0,05), while higher income per household was on the border of significance (p=0,053) on the willingness to purchase animal welfare-friendly products in the future. The original contribution of this study is the identification of Croatian customers’ attitudes towards animal welfarefriendly products and their knowledge about the concept of animal welfare production.

Barbara Lynch Gruppo: An Entrepreneurial Journey

BL Gruppo, a holding company that operated eight wildly acclaimed and highly rated restaurants, plus a catering operation, in Boston, Massachusetts was a culinary mini-empire that had continually achieved recognition as a great organization. The story of BL Gruppo was also two stories of two entrepreneurial journeys. One was the journey of Barbara Lynch, a high school dropout who, through hard work, self-education, perseverance, and entrepreneurial focus, became a world-class chef, and the other was the journey of someone with no formal business training who built a culinary business employing over 230 people and grossing close to $18 million in revenue. Now Lynch faced one of her biggest challenges: How to institutionalize her business to sustain the enjoyment of her regular customers and the opportunity for advancement by her employees, at the same time giving her management team and herself a chance to monetize and create wealth? And just as important: Should she keep directing her entrepreneurial zeal toward trying new business opportunities? Excerpt UVA-ENT-0189 Rev. Jun. 8, 2012 Barbara Lynch Gruppo: An Entrepreneurial Journey Barbara Lynch Gruppo (BL Gruppo) was a holding company that operated eight wildly acclaimed and highly rated restaurants, plus a catering operation, in Boston, Massachusetts. BL Gruppo's culinary mini-empire—award-winning French, Italian, seafood, pasta, and steak restaurants, one of the top bars in the United States, a butcher shop, a catering company, and a demonstration cooking class business—had continually achieved recognition as a great organization. But the story of BL Gruppo was actually two stories, of two entrepreneurial journeys. One was the journey of Lynch, a high school dropout and former numbers runner from the projects of South Boston who, through hard work, self-education, perseverance, and entrepreneurial focus, became a world-class chef. The other was the journey of someone with no formal business training who built a culinary business employing over 230 people and grossing close to $ 18 million in revenue. Lynch's personal story was about her dream and her struggle to fulfill it; her business story was about her growth as an entrepreneur, about making the transition from control freak to leader, building and inspiring teams, acknowledging her weaknesses, and attracting quality people to mitigate those weaknesses. With all of her success, she never lost touch with where she came from and who she was. She understood how fragile success was because, as she said, “I have to work kick-ass hard to stay good.” Now she faced what she considered one of her biggest challenges: How might she institutionalize her business to sustain the enjoyment expected by her regular customers and the opportunity for advancement by her loyal employees, while at the same time giving her management team and herself chance to monetize and create wealth? And just as important: Should she keep directing her entrepreneurial zeal toward trying new business opportunities? What was enough to satisfy both Lynch the person and Lynch the entrepreneur? . . .

The Bacteriological Quality, Safety, and Antibiogram of Salmonella Isolates from Fresh Meat in Retail Shops of Bahir Dar City, Ethiopia.

The habit of raw meat consumption in addition to the poor hygienic standards and lack of knowledge contribute to food-borne diseases outbreaks. The objective of this research was to assess the bacterial quality and safety of fresh meat from retail Bahir Dar City, Ethiopia. A total of 30 fresh meat samples were collected from butcher shops. Standard bacteriological methods were used to isolate and enumerate bacteria. Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion method was used for antimicrobial susceptibility testing of Salmonella isolates. The mean counts of AMB, TC, and S. aureus were log104.53, 3.97, and 3.88 log10cfu/g, respectively. Salmonella was isolated from 21 (70%) of the samples. Salmonella isolates in this study were highly susceptible to ciprofloxacin, gentamycin, and norfloxacin while they were resistant to erythromycin and tetracycline. High rate of multiple drug resistance was also noticed in Salmonella isolates. The microbial loads of meat were above the recommended microbial safety limits. Besides this, the isolation rate of Salmonella was high and high levels of drug resistance were documented for Salmonella isolates. Measures on handling and appropriate personal hygiene practices of workers in the retail shops are recommended to reduce the change of forborne disease outbreaks.

Effects of Dry-Aging on Color and Oxidation Stabilities of Beef Loins

ObjectivesDry-aging is a traditional process to store whole carcasses or unpackaged primals/sub-primals under a controlled environment. Due to its known positive impacts on palatability attributes, dry-aging has been typically practiced in local meat processors or small meat purveyors for upscale butcher shops and/or gourmet restaurants. While there is an increasing demand from local consumers to purchase dry-aged beef from a retail market, there is little information on how dry-aging affects color and oxidation stabilities of beef muscles. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of dry-aging on color and oxidation stabilities of beef loins. To measure the objectives, the conventional dry-aging (DA) of sub-primal loins was compared with two other aging methods– vacuum packaged wet-aging (WA) and dry-aging in a high water permeable bag (DAW).Materials and MethodsPaired beef loins (M. longissimus lumborum) from 9 beef carcasses were obtained at 7 d postmortem, cut into two sections, and assigned to three different aging methods (DA, WA, or DAW) for 28 d at 2°C and 78% relative humidity. After aging, initial trimming of dried surface was made. Then, one steak (2.54 cm thick) was cut from each aged section, overwrapped with PVC film, and displayed for 7 d under a simulated display condition. Instrumental and visual color evaluations were performed during 7 d of display. The 2-thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) and heme/non-heme iron contents were measured for 0 and 7 d of samples. The experimental design was a balanced incomplete block design with three aging methods allocated to the loin sections from 9 beef carcasses in a saturated arrangement (n = 12; 9 carcasses × 2 loins × 2 sections = 36 sections for 3 treatments). All data were analyzed using the PROC MIXED procedure of SAS (SAS Inst. Inc., Cary, NC), and least squares means for all traits were separated (F test, P < 0.05) by using least significant differences generated by the PDIFF option.ResultsDAW beef loin steaks exhibited the most rapid decreases in CIE a* (redness) and visual lean color scores, and sharp increases in hue angle and visual discoloration scores during 7 d of retail display. Conversely, beef steaks from WA and DA treatments showed similar hue angle values during display (P > 0.05), although a slightly higher visual discoloration was observed in DA steaks compared to WA at d 7 (P < 0.05). The TBARS values were affected by different aging types (P < 0.05), where DAW showed the highest accumulation of lipid oxidation followed by DA and WA at the end of display. The heme and non-heme iron contents were not affected by either aging types or display time (P > 0.05).ConclusionThe results from this current study found that dry-aging in a high water permeable bag resulted in the most rapid discoloration and accelerated lipid oxidation during retail display. Steaks from the conventionally dry-aged beef loins seem to have similar color and lipid oxidation stabilities compared to the wet-aged beef counterpart at least up to 5 d of retail display. This observation indicates that steaks from dry-aged beef loins can be likely merchandised in the retail consumer level, once the proper initial trimmings are made. Further studies determining pro-oxidant factors of DAW causing more lipid oxidation and discoloration compared to DA and WA should be warranted.

Butcher's quality of life evaluation with the WHOQOL-bref.

There is a global shortage of individuals for jobs that require special skills and techniques, such as butchers. As a result, the available workers are overloaded, which might impair their quality of life. To assess the quality of life of butchers working for a network of butcher shops in Sao Paulo. Cross-sectional observational study with a selected group of butchers and a control group, with age ranging from 18 to 45 years old and from both genders. A quality of life questionnaire (World Health Organization Quality of Life, bref - WHOQOL-bref) was applied to a sample of 50 butchers and 50 controls. The scores for butchers were statistically significantly lower in all quality of life variables, except for self-assessment compared to the controls (p<0.05) even after adjustment for characteristics differing between the groups. The present study provides data poorly investigated in other studies, and suggests that assessment of the perception of the quality of life of butchers should continue.

A cross-sectional study on the awareness and hygienic practices among the poultry butchers in urban Bengaluru

Background: Poultry and poultry butcher shops are an important source of many food-borne diseases in man. As the consumers are at risk of various health problems, the butchers are also at risk of various occupational hazards due to substandard facilities and unhygienic practices. Objectives: This study was conducted to know the awareness and hygienic practices among the poultry butchers and to assess the knowledge about occupational hazards among them. Materials and Methods: This is a descriptive, quantitative and cross-sectional study conducted for 5 months in ward number 32 of urban Bengaluru. There were 52 poultry butcher shops in this area, and the butchers working in these shops were included in the study. A personal face to face interview was conducted using a preformed questionnaire after obtaining oral consent. Data were analyzed using Microsoft Excel. Results: Of the total 52 shops included for the study, 58% of the shops had a valid license for slaughtering. 25% of butchers were illiterates, and 98% had not undergone any sort of formal training for butchering. Butchers experienced for >5 years were 65%. Awareness regarding health hazards occurring due to consumption of contaminated meat was observed among 29%. Cleanliness of setting (98%) and equipmentÂ’s (83%) were the most important factors to maintain meat hygiene according to the butchers. Protective equipmentÂ’s usage was poor with no aprons, gloves, and gumboots in 46%, 98%, and 92% of the butchers, respectively. Conclusion: Hygienic practices and its awareness among the poultry butchers were very poor. Majority of the butchers were unaware of the occupational hazards among them. Regular monitoring of the shops and formal training for the butchers are needed to improve the hygienic levels and also to bring down the diseases caused due to consumption of contaminated meat.

Detection of Shiga toxin produced by Escherichia coli in poultry and meat in Luxor city using multiplex PCR

Shiga toxins were widely spread in the meat especially in minced meat. These toxins have an important significance tohuman health because it is a major cause of food poisoning. About 150 meat samples purchased from a number ofsupermarkets and butcher shops in Luxor city were examined for presence of E. coli (50 raw meat samples - 50 mincedmeat samples - 50 sample of chicken meat). 62 samples were positive for E.coli spp. 26 isolates were confirmedserologically using O &H specific antisera as E.coli. Incidence of E. coli was in chicken meat 6/50 (12%) and raw meat11/50 (22%) and minced meat 9/50 (18%). 26 E. coli isolates tested serology using special antisera (O & H) recognizethat there are 12 genetic groups They are O26: H11, O114: H21, O119: H4, O2: H6, O125: H21 in chicken meat. O111:H2, O55: H7, O125: H21, O128: H2, O26: H11, O124 in raw meat. In minced meat O128: H2, O119: H4, O44: H18,O26: H11, O111: H2, O78, O55: H7. E.coli O111,O26 and O119 the most prevalent serotype. Polymerase chain reactionwas used to detect virulence genes in isolated strains stx1, stx2, eaeA

Outbreak of Occupational Brucellosis at a Pharmaceutical Factory in Southeast China.

Brucellosis is an occupational disease affecting workers in butcher shops, the milking and dairy product industry, causing more than 500000 new cases around the world. As a national statutory B infectious disease in China, morbidity of brucellosis is rapidly increasing in recent years. We report an occupational outbreak of brucellosis infection in a pharmaceutical factory. Exposure was a result of manual operation in the process line, close contact with sheep placentas, insufficient disinfection and repeated using of protective suits and infected by aerosol dissemination. Improved preventive methods, appropriate public health measures and spread of health education would be helpful to prevent the occupational outbreak of brucellosis in future.

Prevalence and quantification of thermophilic Campylobacter spp. in Italian retail poultry meat: Analysis of influencing factors

Retail poultry meat is a crucial vehicle for consumers' exposure to Campylobacters, but no official controls are currently applied in Italy. The aim of this study was the evaluation of Campylobacter contamination of a wide range of poultry meats marketed in Italy. N. 472 chicken and turkey meat samples (sectioned meats, offal, meat preparations and products) were taken from slaughterhouses, deboning plants and different retailers and submitted to detection/enumeration of Campylobacter spp. The isolates were identified by phenotypic and biomolecular techniques. Campylobacter spp. was detected in 34.1% of the samples, with general low counts. Higher values were observed in offal (especially liver) and sectioned meats, with significantly higher rates in skin-on samples (86.8% vs 32.7%). Minced meat preparations showed lower prevalence (22.4% vs 58.3%) and counts than whole pieces. Decreasing rates were observed among slaughterhouses (80%), deboning plants (49%), butcher's shops (37%) and large scale retailers (25%). Sectioned chicken meats were significantly more contaminated than turkey meats. Almost all the isolates were identified as C. jejuni or C. coli, with similar prevalences (18.4% and 20.5%, respectively); C. jejuni was predominant only in samples from slaughterhouses/deboning plants. For setting future control programs, meat typology should be considered the main critical factor.

DETECTION OF MECA GENE IN METHICILLIN-RESISTANCE STAPHYLOCOCCUS AUREUS (MRSA) STRAINS ISOLATED FROM BEEF MEAT USING POLYMERASE CHAIN REACTION

A total of 60 random samples of meat were collected from different butchers shops at Port- Said city and subjected to bacteriological examination. The prevalence of Staph. aureus coagulase positive was 10 (16. 6%). The coagulase positiveStaph. aureus isolates were tested for their susceptibility to methicillin/ Oxaciillin. 6(60%) of the isolates were resistant to methicillin/ Oxaciillin. Multidrug resistance of MRSA strains was observed. The maximum resistance was observed against Ampicillin and Chloramphenicol (100%) while the least resistance was observed against Streptomycin (66.6%) followed by Gentamicin and Trimethoprim + Sulphamethoxazole (33.3%) and Erythromycin (16.6%). The isolates were analyzed for the presence of the genes encoding resistance to methicillin (mecA) by using Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) which is a powerful and a rapid procedure for the detection of mecA gene in methicllin-resistance (MRSA) strains. Only 3 out of 6 isolates were found to carry the mecA gene amplified at 310 bp. The Staph. aureus found in meat directly affect the human health and can cause a public illness if the meat is used in the food industry. Examination of meat using convetional PCR is a useful technique for detection of mecA gene inMethicillin-resistanceStaph. aureus (MRSA).

Comprehensive Evaluation and Implementation of Improvement Actions in Butcher Shops.

Foodborne pathogens can cause acute and chronic diseases and produce a wide range of symptoms. Since the consumption of ground beef is a risk factor for infections with some bacterial pathogens, we performed a comprehensive evaluation of butcher shops, implemented improvement actions for both butcher shops and consumers, and verified the impact of those actions implemented. A comprehensive evaluation was made and risk was quantified on a 1–100 scale as high-risk (1–40), moderate-risk (41–70) or low-risk (71–100). A total of 172 raw ground beef and 672 environmental samples were collected from 86 butcher shops during the evaluation (2010–2011) and verification (2013) stages of the study. Ground beef samples were analyzed for mesophilic aerobic organisms, Escherichia coli and coagulase-positive Staphylococcus aureus enumeration. Salmonella spp., E. coli O157:H7, non-O157 Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC), and Listeria monocytogenes were detected and isolated from all samples. Risk quantification resulted in 43 (50.0%) high-risk, 34 (39.5%) moderate-risk, and nine (10.5%) low-risk butcher shops. Training sessions for 498 handlers and 4,506 consumers were held. Re-evaluation by risk quantification and microbiological analyses resulted in 19 (22.1%) high-risk, 42 (48.8%) moderate-risk and 25 (29.1%) low-risk butcher shops. The count of indicator microorganisms decreased with respect to the 2010–2011 period. After the implementation of improvement actions, the presence of L. monocytogenes, E. coli O157:H7 and stx genes in ground beef decreased. Salmonella spp. was isolated from 10 (11.6%) ground beef samples, without detecting statistically significant differences between both study periods (evaluation and verification). The percentage of pathogens in environmental samples was reduced in the verification period (Salmonella spp., 1.5%; L. monocytogenes, 10.7%; E. coli O157:H7, 0.6%; non-O157 STEC, 6.8%). Risk quantification was useful to identify those relevant facts in butcher shops. The reduction of contamination in ground beef and the environment was possible after training handlers based on the problems identified in their own butcher shops. Our results confirm the feasibility of implementing a comprehensive risk management program in butcher shops, and the importance of information campaigns targeting consumers. Further collaborative efforts would be necessary to improve foodstuffs safety at retail level and at home.

Listeria spp. contamination in a butcher shop environment and Listeria monocytogenes adhesion ability and sensitivity to food‐contact surface sanitizers

AbstractThis study evaluated the occurrence of L. monocytogenes in the processing environment of a butcher shop, and the in vitro adhesion capacity and sensitivity of isolates to two sanitizers: A (Mister MaxDG1, chlorine based) and B (B‐Quart Sept, quaternary ammonium based). Of the total of 40 samples, 75% were positive for Listeria spp. and 22.5% for L. monocytogenes. 20 isolates were from serogroup 1/2c or 3c, with positive results for all tested virulence genes. All isolates presented adhesion potential. The evaluated sanitizers had the potential to inhibit isolates growth and adhesion, and removed formed biofilms. After evaluation, the sanitizers were adopted by the butcher shop in its sanitation routine, being effective against L. monocytogenes. Collected data allowed identification of adhesion potential by L. monocytogenes and the effectiveness of the tested sanitizers to control contamination by this pathogen.Practical applicationsThe presented study shows the adhesion potential of L. monocytogenes, as well as the resistance of isolates to chlorine and quaternary ammonium based sanitizers, relevant to food facilities cleaning. Finally, we demonstrated the effects of chlorine and quaternary ammonium sanitizers activity on L. monocytogenes biofilm, leading further procedures to avoid adhesion.

A Surgical Training Program of Flexor Tendon Suture Using Pettitoes

Objectives: Flexor tendon suture requires a high level of surgical skills, and repeated training is important for young surgeons to acquire sufficient techniques. Presurgical trainings using supplementary materials have been recommended from the viewpoint of medical ethics, although senior surgeons had obtained their surgical skills through “on the job training.” However, there have been few reports on training programs using supplementary materials. To acquire optimal surgical skills, we have established an original training program of tendon suture for the residents using pettitoes (pig’s trotters). Flexor tendons of pettitoes are very similar to human flexor tendons, and young surgeons can learn surgical skills with repeatable sutures. The purposes of this report are to present our training program of flexor tendon suture using pettitoes and to assess the efficacy of this program. Methods: Forty residents participated in the program and answered a questionnaire. After brief instruction, each resident was exposed to the flexor tendons of pettitoes. The flexor tendons were cut and repaired with Tsuge’s 4-strand technique using 4-0 loop nylon threads. Residents were instructed not to grip the tendons with the forceps, and suture them as atraumatic as possible. Post program evaluation was performed using the questionnaire data. Results: All participants were able to understand the theory and concept of flexor tendon suture and could complete the flexor tendon sutures in any manner under the guidance of an instructor; however, they could not accomplish sutures fully using the atraumatic techniques. They evaluated that they have gained 65% (25%-100%) of the ideal atraumatic technique in the self-assessment test. All participants rated our program as good or excellent. Conclusions: Pettitoes are readily available from butcher shops and cost only 100 yen (approximately US$1.00) in Japan. Flexor tendons of pettitoes are very similar to the human tendons, and the participants can learn the theory of suture, difficulty of the procedure, and the fun of hand surgery. Flexor tendon sutures using pettitoes can be recommended in the training program of hand surgery for young residents.

High prevalence of clade 8 Escherichia coli O157:H7 isolated from retail meat and butcher shop environment

Escherichia coli O157:H7 is an enteric pathogen associated with food safety threats and with significant morbidity and mortality worldwide. In Argentina, post-enteric hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) is endemic, with >70% of cases associated with E. coli O157 infection. To date the biological basis behind the severity among E. coli O157 infections is unknown. However, single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) typing has helped to define nine E. coli O157:H7 clades, of which clade 8 strains are associated with severe disease cases. The aim of this study was to characterize a collection of 20 STEC O157:H7 strains isolated between 2011 and 2013 from ground beef and different environmental samples from butcher shops of Argentina. All strains harbored the eae, ehxA, fliCH7, efa, iha, and toxB genes, with stx2a/stx2c as the predominant genotype (75%). The XbaI-PFGE analysis showed that the E. coli O157 strains had high genetic diversity. Nine strains were grouped in four XbaI-PFGE clusters, whereas 11 strains showed unique XbaI-PFGE patterns. In contrast, the SNP analysis allowed us to separate the strains in two distinct lineages representing clade 8 (70%) and clade 6 (30%). Our results show the molecular characterization of E. coli O157 strains isolated from ground beef and environmental samples from Argentinean butcher shops.

Detection of Escherichia coli and E. coli O157 in Veal Mincemeat in Baghdad

In order to investigate the prevalence of Escherichia coli and E. coli O157 in veal mincemeat, thirty pooled samples (three replicates from each type, n=90) were randomly collected from different markets and butcher shops in Baghdad during April until August (2015), in which they processed and analyzed by different food microbiological procedures. The results showed isolation and identification of 27 (90%) isolates out of 30 pooled samples as 13 (86.7%) isolates from 15 locally butcher shops mincemeat, in which the serotype O157 was detected in 5 (33.4%) samples; and 14 (93.4%) isolates from 15 imported veal meat (minced locally for human consumption), in which 7 (46.7%) isolates were identified as a serotype O157. The mean log count of E. coli to E. coli O157 in locally produced mincemeat range from 2.845 to 5.602 log10 cfu g_1, while in imported ones range from 4.778 to 8.954 log10 cfu g_1. Results profile provide useful information on biosafety and hazard analyses critical control points of hygienic measurements of E. coli and E. coli O157 in mincemeat marketed in Baghdad.

Augmenting Quality and Microbial Safety of Broiler Meat at Refrigeration Storage by Applying Chemical Interventions

The spoilage of meat may arise from several intrinsic and extrinsic factors including physical damage or chemical changes. It is well established fact that microbial activity is by far the most significant cause of meat deterioration. This study was conducted with the aim to investigate the role of chlorine (0.5, 1 and 1.5%), trisodium phosphate (TSP, 5, 10 and 15%) and ascorbic acid (1, 2 and 3%) solutions in meat preservation. Quality parameters including color, texture, pH, TVB-N values and sensory attributes of meat were also analyzed during the storage period of 8 days at refrigeration temperature. Results showed that 15% TSP solution showed the minimum value of total plate count (2.09 log CFU/cm2) which indicated its greater potential for surface decontamination of raw chicken as compared to the other treatments. Practical Applications The key objective of this study was to explore the potential of different antimicrobial agents such as chlorinated water, trisodium phosphate and ascorbic acid for surface decontamination, quality attributes and sensory characteristics of raw poultry meat. Currently, poultry industry is looking for different antimicrobial solutions for online applications to curb microbial load of meat and meat products during processing and preservation. This research work is important for developing countries because most of the meat is being sold in butcher's shop under unhygienic conditions. Accordingly, the current project will help the meat professionals to improve the meat quality and to mitigate the microbial load through deploying different antimicrobial regimens.

Occurrence, Antimicrobial Resistance Pattern and Plasmid Profile of Salmonella spp. Isolated from Raw Beef Meat in Dhaka City

Salmonella is motile enterobacterium that causes diseases like typhoid fever, paratyphoid fever and food borne illnesses. Salmonella infections are due to the consumption of contaminated foods. The objective of the present study was to observe the sanitary and hygienic conditions of the retail areas and to isolate pathogenic Salmonella spp from raw beef, to observe antimicrobial sensitivity pattern of Salmonella spp from the raw beef. A total of forty (40) raw beef samples were collected from the sixteen different butcher shops of the four different markets namely Bazaar-1, Bazaar-2, Bazaar-3 and Bazaar-4 of Dhaka City to determine the presence of the significant enteric pathogen Salmonella. From the colony characteristic and biochemical properties, it was found that out of forty samples Salmonella were found in thirty four (85%) samples. The prevalence of drug resistance bacteria were also assayed by antibiotic susceptibility testing. Among thirty four isolates, nearly 6% (2), 32% (11), 76% (26), 6%(2) and 32% (12) isolates showed resistance to Nitrofurantoin, Nalidixic acid, Ampicillin , Gentamycin and Trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole respectively. Almost 85%(29), 62%(21), 24% (8), 91% (31), 91% (31)and 68% (23) isolates showed sensitivity to Nitrofurantoin, Nalidixic acid, Ampicillin,Ciprofloxacin,Gentamycin and Trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole respectively Some isolates also showed intermediate in sensitivity reaction for example 3% (1), 6% (2), 3% (1) and 9% (3) isolates showed intermediate in sensitivity reaction to Nitrofurantoin, Ampicillin, Ciprofloxacin, Gentamycin and Nitrofurantoin respectively. Twenty four isolates were investigated for the plasmid profile analysis where thirteen isolates (about 54%) were found to carry plasmids of different sizes ranging from small (2.3 kb) to large sizes (&gt;10kb and also greater than the chromosomal DNA). The presence of large plasmids may be a possible source of drug resistance. The results of this study demonstrate the unhygienic quality of beef meat and their risk of contracting food borne infections to the consumers.Bangladesh J Microbiol, Volume 29, Number 1, June 2012, pp 17-22

Characterization of Extended Spectrum Β-Lactamase Producing Enterobacteria and Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Isolated from Raw Pork and Cooked Pork Products in South China.

In this study, we assessed the co-colonization with extended spectrum β-lactamase producing Enterobacteria (ESBL-E) and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in raw pork and cooked pork products in south China. In total, 240 raw pork and 240 cooked pork samples collected from supermarkets (n = 20) and local butcher shops (n = 20) in the city of Guangzhou (China) were investigated. Raw pork and cooked pork was more frequent colonization with ESBL-E (7.5% in raw pork and 0.4% in cooked pork products) than with MRSA (4.2% in raw pork). Two of samples were contaminated with both tested types of multidrug-resistant bacteria. High antibiotic-resistance rate with wide spectrums of both ESBL-E and MRSA isolated were observed. In ESBL-E isolates, TEM (n = 15), CTX-M-1 (n = 3), CTX-M-9 (n = 1), and SHV (n = 1) genes were detected. TEM and SHV genes were associated with CTX-M-1 in 2 isolates, respectively. The CTX-M-9 gene of 1 isolate from cooked pork samples was found to be transferred to Escherichia coli J53 by conjugation. Detected MLST-types of MRSA were livestock-associated ST7 (n = 5) and ST9 (n = 4), as well as hospital-acquired ST239 (n = 1), suggesting contamination from human source(s) during meat processing. These findings confirmed a contamination of raw pork and cooked pork with ESBL-E and MRSA and emphasized the necessity of enforcing hygienic practices and specific detection of MRSA and ESBL-producing bacteria in meat processing and storage.

Enterococci as indicator of potential growth of Salmonella in fresh minced meat at retail

The present study had the purpose of demonstrating a positive correlation between enterococci and Salmonella in minced pork and beef. Data from 2001 to 2002 from retail minced pork and beef in Denmark were used and the association between concentration of enterococci and prevalence and concentration of Salmonella was examined. A total of 2187 and 2747 samples of minced pork and beef, respectively, were collected from butcher shops and supermarkets throughout the country. In pork, 2.1% of all samples were positive for Salmonella whereas 1.5% of beef samples were positive. Among samples with ≥100 CFU/g of enterococci, prevalence of Salmonella positive samples was 3.4%, which was significantly higher than 1.2% observed in minced meat with less than 100 CFU/g of enterococci (P < 0.001). A positive association between occurrence of enterococci and presence of Salmonella in retail minced meat was supported as both prevalence and concentration of Salmonella in positive samples increased with increasing concentrations of enterococci in minced meat. From our data, we suggest that minced meat containing more than 500 enterococci per gram is suspected of having been exposed to temperatures allowing growth of Salmonella. This is to our knowledge the first report, which links presence of an indicator to potential growth of Salmonella.