Condemnation Rate Research Articles

Prevalence and seasonal variation of Fasciola hepatica in slaughtered cattle: the role of climate and environmental factors in Mexico.

The objective of this study is to determine the prevalence of Fasciola hepatica infection in cattle slaughterhouses, as well as its association with climatic/environmental factors (derived from satellite data), seasonality and climate regions in two states in Mexico. Condemned livers from slaughtered animals were obtained from three abattoirs in the states of Puebla and Veracruz. The overall prevalence of the parasite in cattle between January and December of 2017 was 20.6% (1407 out of 6834); the highest rate of condemnation was observed in Veracruz (26.3%; tropical climate), and the lowest rate was found in Puebla (15.5%; temperate climate). The seasonal prevalence of fluke infection was 18.6%, 14.8% and 28.4% during the wet season, and 17.1%, 12.4% and 22.8% during the dry season in the three abattoir sites, located in the districts of Zacatlán, Teziutlán and Ciudad Alemán, respectively. Liver condemnations due to bovine fasciolosis were prevalent in the Zacatlán, Teziutlán and Ciudad Alemán districts during summer, autumn and summer, respectively. Using generalized estimating equations analysis, we determined six variables - rainfall (wet/dry), land surface temperature day, land surface temperature night, normalized difference vegetation index, seasonality and climate regions (temperate/tropical) - to be significantly associated with the prevalence of condemned livers. Climate region was the variable most strongly associated with F. hepatica infection (odds ratio (OR) 266.59; 95% confidence interval (CI): 241.90-353.34), followed by wet and dry seasons (OR 25.56; 95% CI: 20.56-55.67).

Avian infectious bronchitis and its management in Nepal: a review

Avian infectious bronchitis (IB) is a highly contagious disease of poultry with high economic importance. Caused by avian infectious bronchitis virus (IBV), it is transmitted by direct and indirect contact through aerosol or fecal means. Although IB is considered as respiratory disease, various strains of IBV affect the renal as well as the reproductive system. The economic importance of disease is due to lower egg production, poor hatchability of eggs, and decreased quality of the egg, weight loss, growth retardation, and high condemnation rates in meat-type birds. Although the prevalence of IB is lower in Nepal (>1%), it is ranked second as a disease which claims most livestock unit in the world. There is no specific treatment for IB but live and inactivated vaccines are available for the prevention and control of the virus. The lack of research in the infectious bronchitis virus can cause production losses in poultry sector due to the evolution of resistant virus strain in our country. This review discusses the aspects of avian infectious bronchitis prevalence in Nepal.

Prevalence and economic loss of bovine tuberculosis in a municipal abattoir, Abeokuta Southwestern Nigeria

A 12 month cross-sectional study was carried out at Lafenwa Abattoir Abeokuta, Southwestern Nigeria from July, 2011 to June, 2012. This was to determine the prevalence and economic loss of bovine tuberculosis in this abattoir. A total of 928 cases of bovine tuberculosis out of 52,273 cattle slaughtered during this period were condemned, representing a total prevalence of 1.78% (95% CI: 1.31- 2.14%). Typical tuberculous lesions were found in the Lung, Liver and Spleen, higher rate of organ condemnation was observed in the lung followed by liver and spleen. There was statistically significant difference in rate of organ condemnation (P<0.05). The monthly prevalence and sequence plot revealed an epidemic tendency for bovine tuberculosis during this period and there was statistically significant difference between prevalence of bovine tuberculosis and seasonal occurrence. An estimated total loss of N1.2 million (US$7,367) due to bovine tuberculosis was observed in this abattoir for the year. It was concluded that bovine tuberculosis is prevalent with epidemic tendency in cattle destined for human consumption, also with attending serious public health implications and huge loss to both the butchers and national economy.

Effects of age, weight, and housing system on prevalence of dead on arrival and carcass condemnation causes in laying hens

Causes of condemnation and dead on arrival (DoA) birds were studied at the slaughterhouse and effects of age, BW, and housing system were investigated. A total of 1,156 (0.18%) birds were found DoA and 20,754 carcasses out of 629,331 (3.30%) were condemned during postmortem inspection. The main reasons for condemnation were peritonitis, septicemia, salpingitis, emaciation, and tumors. The mean percentages of condemnation by septicemia and emaciation differed according to age and BW groups and were more common in batches of younger (≤87 wk) and lighter (≤1.88 kg) birds. Moreover, peritonitis and ascites differed significantly between age groups, occurring more frequently in batches of older hens. The presence of tumors of the reproductive system was more frequently observed in older and heavier hens. This result raises the possibility of tumors being correlated with the higher number of prior ovulatory events. The total condemnation rate was lower in hens from organic systems, followed by free-range, and differed significantly from barns and cage systems. Carcasses with ascites and peritonitis were found more commonly in hens from cages and barns and both differed significantly from organic systems. Salpingitis was statistically more prevalent in barns, presenting differences from organic and free-range systems. Monitoring condemnation causes of end-of-lay hens at slaughter provided a better understanding of health and welfare issues in different housing systems and allowed to identify potential welfare problems, which can be used to improve management and welfare on farms.

Causes, Patterns, and Economic Implications of Carcass Condemnation of Cattle Slaughtered at Oshana Region, North of Namibia Based on Post-Mortem Inspection

Background: Meat inspection is one of the essential tools for ensuring good quality and safe meat. The objective of this study was to evaluate carcass condemnation of cattle slaughtered in Oshana region, North of Namibia. Methods: In this 4-year retrospective study, causes, patterns, and economic implications of carcass condemnation of cattle slaughtered in Oshana region, North of Namibia were evaluated based on post-mortem inspection procedure. The SPSS software version 25 was used for statistical analysis. Results: Overall, 0.37% (120 out of 32 648) beef carcasses were condemned during the period of this study. The major causes of condemnation of carcasses were bruising (60 out of 120; 50%), followed by pus contamination. The condemnation rate in female cattle (65%) was significantly (p<0.05) higher than male cattle (35%). Overall, a significantly greater number (p<0.05) of carcasses were condemned in summer (74.2%) than in winter (25.8%). Conclusion: This study identified bruising, pus contamination, and cachexia as the major causes of bovine carcass condemnation in North of Namibia and showed that carcass condemnation rate varied with the year, season, and age.

Impacts of major health conditions affecting the Australian sheepmeat value chain: a review.

Major health conditions in sheep contribute to substantial economic losses throughout the sheepmeat supply chain in Australia. A systematic review was undertaken to explore the measurable impact of six conditions: arthritis, sheep measles, pleurisy, pneumonia, grass seeds and rib fractures, on the production of lamb and mutton across the meat value chain. Peer-reviewed scientific literature from three databases and non-peer-reviewed articles and reports from Australian government and non-government websites were searched between 11 and 17 November 2019. Original articles, including studies conducted in Australia and New Zealand, that had measurable impacts on conditions of interest were included. The search yielded 16 articles and reports and were classified as producer impact and/or processor impact studies. Mortalities were quantified for pneumonia and arthritis, with pneumonia having the highest impact for producers. Grass seed infestation resulted in the highest impact on carcase and liveweight losses compared to arthritis and pneumonia. Arthritis had the highest trim weight losses for both lamb and mutton and the highest rate of carcase condemnation. Grass seed was the only condition where other impacts on the processor (chain speed and staff relocation to the boning room) were quantified. Although quantifiable production and processing losses were available for some conditions, this review has highlighted that limited quantifiable data based on scientifically sound research were not available for other conditions. The evidence for some conditions found in this review can be used to target future research activities and to further assist producers in making informed management decisions on prevention and control.

Management factors influencing the occurrence of cellulitis in broiler chickens

One of the main reasons for condemning fattening broiler chickens during meat inspection is cellulitis, which demonstrates the great economic issue concerning this topic. The aim of this epidemiological study was therefore to identify risk factors in order to draw conclusions on how to prevent the occurrence of cellulitis in broilers by implementing management changes. The data were collected between April and November 2018 on conventional broiler farms (n = 100) in the north of Germany with one to fourteen poultry houses per farm. In total, data were collected from 199 broiler flocks with a total of 5,332,767 broilers. Data on the type of management (feeding- and drinking management, housing, lighting management, litter type and animal health) were collected via a questionnaire, with additional data on condemnation rates being provided by the abattoirs. It was found that litter additives like fennel, eucalyptus and probiotics as well as a moist litter quality were associated with lower cellulitis condemnation rates. Flocks fattened in windowless barns, but with relatively higher lux-values as well as those broilers examined in a lower number of housing inspections had significantly lower cellulitis condemnation rates compared to other husbandry systems. In addition, lower cellulitis rates were seen when housing capacities were smaller, regardless of stocking density. The source of the breeders and hatchery also had a significant influence on the occurrence of cellulitis. No correlation was found between the condemnation rates due to cellulitis and the performance of thinning, the water source used, the use of drinking additives, observational skills and number of herd managers monitoring the broilers, participation in an animal welfare programme, the technique of heating and ventilation systems used, the feed supplier, litter material, the broiler breed, the length of darkness periods and chick losses during the first seven days. We concluded that management decisions that lead to stress reduction in the broiler flocks are beneficial in terms of chicken welfare and occurrence of cellulitis.

Economic model of bovine fasciolosis in Nigeria: an update.

Bovine fasciolosis is a zoonotic infection transmitted by infected freshwater snail-Lymnaea (Radix) natalensis-in tropical regions. The prevalence of bovine fasciolosis in Nigeria is overwhelming with huge financial cost. In the chronic form of the disease, hyperplastic cholangitis and calcification of bile ducts occur with severe liver damage. The aim of the study was to estimate annual economic losses of bovine fasciolosis in Nigeria. Disease prevalence was estimated at 18.3% (8.5-30.6), average annual disease incidence is maintained at 2.5%, an estimated mortality rate of 1.5%, a total liver condemnation rate of 11.1% were estimated from affected liver due to fasciolosis, annual slaughter rate of 10.5% and a total cattle population of 20 million. A total of 7.3% livestock owners consider fasciolosis as a threat, while only 4.3% have ever used molluscicide. Treatment cost of controlling fasciolosis is estimated at US$375,000, which puts the total annual loss due to fasciolosis at US$26.02 million. Both direct and indirect sources of production losses have an impact on the livestock industry in Nigeria. Bovine fasciolosis threatens food security in Nigeria; therefore, further awareness among livestock owners is needed on control strategies to improve the income base for small-scale livestock farmers.

Risk factors for poor health and performance in European broiler production systems

BackgroundConventional broilers are currently one of the most efficient protein converters. Although decades of progress in genetic selection and feed formulation have lead to high standards of efficient broiler production, still a lot of variability is found between farms and between successive flocks. The aim of this study was to investigate risk- and/or protective factors for poor health and performance in conventional broiler-farms in Europe by developing eight multivariable linear mixed models. Three different models were used to investigate mortality (overall, first week, after first week), three models for performance variables (growth, feed conversion, European production index) and two models were related to slaughterhouse data (i.e. dead on arrival and condemnation rate).ResultsSeveral factors related to management and housing were significantly associated with health and performance of broilers. The following factors were associated with increased mortality: floor quality, neonatal septicemia, ventilation type and other professional activities of the farmer. The factors associated with performance were chick sex, coccidiosis infections, necrotic enteritis, dysbacteriosis, light intensity adaptations, ventilation type, comparing daily flock results with previous flock results by farmer, daily check of feed and water system and type of feed. For dead on arrival three risk factors were identified i.e. daily growth, type of light adaptation and type of drinkers system. For condemnation rate seven risk factors were found, i.e. type of drinking system, daily growth, feed withdrawal time, type of ventilation, house size, septicemia after seven days and type of feed.ConclusionsThese results imply that a multifactorial approach is required with adaptations involving both improvements in management, housing, health programs and an increasing level of professionalism of the farmer in order to improve broiler performance and health.

Identification of production chain risk factors for slaughterhouse condemnation of broiler chickens’

Slaughterhouse condemnation of broiler chickens results from identification of polymorphic pathological conditions during meat inspection from arrival and on the slaughter line. While conditions that result in condemnation are multifactorial, identification of factors that are common for a number of categories could be valuable for developing strategies to reduce total condemnation. This study aimed to identify those condemnation categories that were most common in batches of broiler chickens and to determine and compare associated risk factors. In the first step, retrospective meat inspection records for 55,918 broiler batches from one large broiler integrator for 2015–2017 were used for association rules analysis. Results identified a network of nine associated condemnation categories: whole carcass condemnation for ascites, abnormal colour, perihepatitis, cellulitis, hard breast, tumours and dead on arrival, and liver only and heart only most often associated with hepatitis and pericarditis, respectively. Secondly, a longitudinal study collected data on 109 explanatory variables from broiler parental flocks to slaughterhouse characteristics between January 2015 and December 2017. Condemnation outcome data were obtained from meat inspection records for 539 broiler batches participating in the study. Parental flock-, rearing farm-, shed- and transport-level risk factors were assessed for each outcome using mixed-effects multivariable Poisson regression including shed and farm as random effects. A Poisson regression tree method was used as the first step to identify variables most relevant for analysis and comparison across the outcomes. No single production factor was associated with all nine of the condemnation outcomes investigated in this study, although some were shared across multiple outcomes: age of parental flock at time of lay, flock-level Campylobacter spp. frequency, broiler chick weight at seven days of age, weight at slaughter, type of broiler removal (i.e. thinning, final depopulation), catcher team, number of birds per transport crate, slaughterhouse shift number, and type of slaughterhouse line. Broiler chickens removed during final depopulation were at greatest risk of condemnation. Condemnation rates for cellulitis and tumours were found to be higher in broilers inspected by night shift at the slaughterhouse. Discovery of an apparent protective effect of a higher number of broilers per transport crate was unexpected. These findings provide information for the broiler industry on production chain factors that might be amenable to targeted intervention to improve future efforts for control of condemnation.

Major Causes of Organ and Carcass Condemnation and Its Financial Losses in Cattle Slaughtered at Wolaita Sodo Municipal Abattior, Snnprs, Ethiopia

A cross sectional study was conducted from November 2017 to April 2018 with the objective of assessing the major causes and rate of organ/carcass condemnation and to estimate annual financial loses in cattle slaughtered at Wolaita Sodo Municipal Abattoir, SNNPR, Ethiopia. From all 368 cattle selected randomly and examined 165 (44.8%) and 120 (32.6%) showed both ante-mortem and postmortem abnormalities respectively. Conditions like lameness 52(14.1%), salivation 26(7.1%), branding 24(6.5%), diarrhea 20(5.4%) and rough hair 16(4.3%), lacrimation 10(2.7%), local swelling 8(2.2%) were the major recorded abnormalities in ante-mortem examination. In postmortem examination 65 (17.7%) livers, 41(11.1%/ 280.8kg) carcass due to bruise and abscess, 19(5.2%) lung, 4 (1.1%) hearts and 2 (0.5%) tongues was rejected due to various abnormalities. The major pathological lesions that caused organ condemnations were fasciola 47(12.8%), bruising 36(9.8%), calcification 10(2.7%), hydrated cyst 5(1.3%), abscessation 5(1.3%) and cysticercus bovis 5(1.3%). There was statistically significant association (p<0.05) between liver condemnation and body condition categories of animals. There was no statistical significance (P>0.05) between the origin and age of animals with the condemnation rate of different organs. The annual financial loss due to the rejection of organs and carcass of cattle slaughtered at Wolaita Sodo municipal abattoir was estimated approximately 148,643 ETB (5,505.3USD). This huge financial loss indicates that there should be appropriate disease prevention and control program in the study area. Keywords : Abattoir, Ante-mortem, Financial loss, Organ condemnation, Post-mortem DOI: 10.7176/JHMN/74-04 Publication date: May 31 st 2020

Review on Socio-Economic Significance of Hydatidosis in Humans and Animals in Ethiopia

Hydatidosis/Cystic Echinococcosis (CE) is one of the most important neglected tropical parasitic diseases of livestock that has both financial and public health significance caused by larval (metacestode) stage of Cestodes belonging to the genus Echinococcus, family Taenidae. CE caused by the larval stage of E. granulosus is recognized as being one of the major zoonosis and associated with severe economic losses and great public health significance worldwide. The distribution of hydatidosis is normally associated with underdeveloped countries, especially in rural communities where humans maintain close contact with dogs and various domestic animals. Carnivores are definite hosts for the parasite with livestock acting as intermediate hosts and human as accidental intermediate or aberrant host. Globally, economic losses estimated to cause human and livestock associated annual economic losses of at least US$ 193,529,740 and US$ 141,605,195, respectively and estimated to causes 2-3 million human cases are thought to occur worldwide. Abattoir based studies conducted in various parts of Ethiopia, showed that prevalence of CE ranges from 6.51% to 54.5%, 0% to 24.8%, 11.69% to 65.47% and 7.03% to 60.2% in cattle, goats, camel and sheep respectively and 8561.61 ETB to 19,847,704.5 ETB annual economic losses in animals. In human prevalence of 1.6% and 0.5% have been reported from southern part of Ethiopia. On the human side economic losses arise through diagnostic cost, treatment cost and cost of hospitalization. In animals’ economic losses are observed in decreased carcass weight, milk production and fertility rates, and from increased rate of condemnation of affected organs. Breaking the life cycle is one of the main control measures. Strengthening of veterinary facilities and extension systems, expansion of abattoir facilities to avoid backyard slaughter practices, creation of community awareness, regular deworming of dogs and appropriate disposal of infected organs are recommendations forwarded in order to help zoonosis control.

Economic losses due to condemnation of swine visceras in slaughterhouse under state inspection service from Sinop, Mato Grosso, Brazil

This study aimed to describe the swine visceral condemnation rates as well as the economic losses in a slaughterhouse from Sinop, Mato Grosso State, Brazil. This study was conducted during the period of January to October, 2008. According to the results, each part results in economic losses for the industry, caused by wrong industrial process or for diseases. This way, it was verified that the lungs represented 38.65% of the total condemnated, the liver represented 32.45%, and kidney (3.26%). It was discarded 39,593 visceral, causing economic loss in order of R$59,389.00 by wrong processing methods. Is important to review the industry routine to reduce this errors and correct identification of abnormalities found during post-mortem inspection ensure the diagnosis of diseases that can be transmitted to consumers through consumption of animal products.

Injury and condemnation data of pigs at slaughterhouses with federal inspection in the State of Paraná, Brazil, as indicators of welfare during transportation

ABSTRACT: Pigs transportation is a critical stage for their welfare and can directly influence the rates of carcass condemnation. The objective of this research was to study the injuries and condemnation data recorded in the Federal Inspection System (SIF) as potential welfare indicators during pig transport. In federally inspected slaughterhouses in the State of Paraná, Brazil, from january 2011 to December 2016, 1.4% (602,006) of carcasses were condemned, 15.0% (90,426) as a result of injuries related to transportation. From total condemnation cases, 12.1% (72,759) were due to traumatic injury, 2.5% (15,144) to PSE, 0.4% (2,327) to dead on arrival and 0.03% (196) to other transportation welfare indicators. There was no correlation between the condemnation rates and the meteorological data. The results exposed the need for improvement in pig transport conditions. In addition, this study allowed us to point out possible improvements in the collection of nosographic data into the SIF’s Management Information System (SIGSIF), such as inclusion of other injuries associated with welfare restrictions, standardization of the terms that already exist in the system, improvement in the indicator measurements, development of regulations and training for professionals involved. Results suggested that SIGSIF data are useful for monitoring the welfare of pigs during transportation, with potential for refinement from improvements in data recording.

Beef edible red offal condemnations in Kgatleng Slaughter Facilities, South eastern Botswana in a wet and dry season period

The study aimed to determine pathological conditions across two seasons, leading to condemnations of beef edible red offals in Kgatleng District, Botswana. Offals are valued in communities of Botswana. Data from slaughter facilities was evaluated for dry/winter and wet/summer seasons. Financial losses were also determined. 7405 cattle were processed in the two seasons, with 4005 cattle slaughtered in the dry season and 3400 in the wet season. Of the slaughtered cattle, 55.2% (2209) of the dry season and 45% (1531) of the wet seasonhad some forms of pathological conditions that led to condemnations of the offals. Lungs were highly condemned at 26.2% in the wet season and 32.7% during the dry season, followed by livers at 16.2 and 18.4% in the wet and dry seasons, respectively. Emphysema led to a condemnation rate of lungs at 20% and 17% for the dry and wet seasons, respectively. The least condemned offals were the spleen at 2.3% (wet season) and 2.1% (dry season), followed by the kidneys at 0.3% (wet season) and 2% (dry season). Financially, the dry season losses were relatively higher at BWP62 950.55 compared to the wet season at BWP43 863.95. Management strategies should be put in place to avail offals to consumers. Key words: Beef, edible red offals, pathological conditions, wet and dry seasons.

The challenge of incorporating animal welfare in a social life cycle assessment model of European chicken production

PurposeThere is increasing public concern over standards of farm animal welfare, yet the majority of sustainability studies of livestock have thus far focused only on environmental performance and profitability. Where social analysis has been carried out, there has yet to be a consistent methodology developed that incorporates animal welfare into social life cycle assessment (S-LCA). A framework was developed to assess animal welfare, using conventional broiler chicken meat production in Europe as a case in point.MethodsData were collected on stocking density, mortality, and carcass condemnation rate from conventional chicken meat production systems in Europe. The quantitative risk of each welfare indicator was characterised in accordance with the Social Hotspots Database methodology based on best to worst farm performances, i.e. quartiles of the data collected for each indicator. The overall animal welfare impact was assessed using a weighted sum methodology, which accounted for the level of risk animals were exposed to for each indicator and the animal lifespan. From this, a Social Hotspot Index (SHI) could be calculated for the animal welfare impact associated with the functional unit, which was 1 kg of chicken meat production. The animal welfare impact of four European countries was then compared.Results and discussionThe countries assessed displayed a range of values for overall animal welfare impact; the country with the best animal welfare had a SHI for animal welfare impact of 0.14, whilst the worst had a SHI for animal welfare impact of 0.72. Farms that kept more birds per building had an increased overall animal welfare impact. Animal welfare, determined by negative welfare indicators, was worse in more recently established farm buildings due to increased flock size.ConclusionsA methodology that incorporates animal welfare indicators into S-LCA was developed that is both scalable and related to welfare assessment frameworks. Although only some specific negative welfare indicators were considered here, the methodology could easily accommodate additional negative indicators and even positive welfare indicators as advancements are made in the understanding of animal welfare. Hence, this study provides a springboard for further development of S-LCA, animal welfare assessment and, ultimately, improved animal welfare in livestock systems.

Pathological and molecular findings of avian reoviruses from clinical cases of tenosynovitis in poultry flocks from Brazil.

Avian reoviruses (ARVs) can infect a variety of species worldwide. Birds can present stunting syndrome, respiratory and/or enteric diseases, immunosuppression, malabsorption, viral arthritis/tenosynovitis, and even secondary infections by other microorganisms. Flaws in conventional vaccines and the increase in the diagnostic rate of disease in the last 5 yr suggest the emergence of pathogenic ARVs in the poultry flocks worldwide. This study aimed to characterize birds lesions and to detect/genotype ARVs from a severe outbreak of tenosynovitis in broiler poultry flocks from Brazil. Tissue samples of lesions on pelvic limbs of broiler chicken were collected in poultry flocks with a high condemnation rate of carcasses due to lesions and submitted to histological and molecular analysis. Major gross pathological lesions included marked swelling, edema, and hemorrhages. Serous exudate was present between the tendons and hock joint. Histological examination demonstrated necrosis and inflammation of muscle fibers, mixed inflammatory infiltrate was observed in subcutaneous tissue and tendon sheaths. ARVs RNA was detected in 5 samples tested by polymerase chain reaction. These samples were also genotyped and demonstrated the occurrence of strains of the ARVs lineages II and V in the flocks. These results suggest that theses field ARVs, genetically distant from previously characterized strains, are associated to tenosynovitis and present in commercial Brazilian poultry flocks.

Characterization of Escherichia coli causing cellulitis in broilers

The aim of the study was to investigate cellulitis caused by Escherichia coli which has been responsible for economic and welfare problems in Danish broiler production between 2014 and 2016. The study included 13 flocks with unusually high condemnation rates due to cellulitis during a period of approximately one year. From six flocks, 126 condemned carcasses were collected at a Danish slaughterhouse. Further 272 broilers dead on their own were collected on nine broiler farms from flocks with increased mortality and cellulitis (2 farms included both birds from the rearing period and broilers subsequently condemned). All broilers were subjected to post mortem investigation including bacteriology and 247 E. coli isolates were obtained in pure culture from typical lesions of cellulitis. Two-hundred-thirty six E. coli isolates were investigated by pulsed field gel electrophoresis for clonality and 21 selected strains representing major clones were subsequently multi locus sequence typed allowing comparison to sequence types (ST) in the databases. One dominating PFGE type (A) was found to cause cellulitis on all 13 flocks (67% of all isolates). The clone belonged to ST117, which is well described as a pathogen in poultry, and was the primary agent responsible for cellulitis. Whole genome sequencing of eight E. coli isolates confirmed the close genetic relationship between isolates from the outbreaks and showed the presence of genes predicted to encode for the autotransporter proteins aatA, pic and upaG, reported to be of importance for adhesion of E. coli to eukaryotic cells.

Characterization of the Temporal Trends in the Rate of Cattle Carcass Condemnations in the US and Dynamic Modeling of the Condemnation Reasons in California With a Seasonal Component.

Based on the 2016 National Cattlemen's Beef Association statistics, the cattle inventory in the US reached 93.5 million head, from which 30.5 million were commercial slaughter in 2016. California ranked fourth among all the US states that raise cattle and calves, with 5.15 million head and approximately 1.18 million slaughtered animals per year. Approximately 0.5% of cattle carcasses in the US are condemned each year, which has an important economic impact on cattle producers.In this study, we first described and compared the temporal trends of cattle carcass condemnations in all the US states from Jan-2005 to Dec-2014. Then, we focused on the condemnation reasons with a seasonal component in California and used dynamic harmonic regression (DHR) models both to model (from Jan-2005 to Dec-2011) and predict (from Jan-2012 to Dec-2014) the carcass condemnations rate in different time horizons (3 to 12 months).Data consisted of daily reports of 35 condemnation reasons per cattle type reported in 684 federally inspected slaughterhouses in the US from Jan-2005 to Dec-2014 and the monthly slaughtered animals per cattle type per states. Almost 1.5 million carcasses were condemned in the US during the 10 year study period (Jan 2005-Dec 2014), and around 40% were associated with three condemnation reasons: malignant lymphoma, septicemia and pneumonia. In California, emaciation, eosinophilic myositis and malignant lymphoma were the only condemnation reasons presenting seasonality and, therefore, the only ones selected to be modeled using DHRs. The DHR models for Jan-2005 to Dec-2011 were able to correctly model the dynamics of the emaciation, malignant lymphoma and eosinophilic myositis condemnation rates with coefficient of determination () of 0.98, 0.87 and 0.78, respectively. The DHR models for Jan-2012 to Dec-2014 were able to predict the rate of condemned carcasses 3 month ahead of time with mean relative prediction error of 33, 11, and 38%, respectively. The systematic analysis of carcass condemnations and slaughter data in a more real-time fashion could be used to identify changes in carcass condemnation trends and more timely support the implementation of prevention and mitigation strategies that reduce the number of carcass condemnations in the US.

Trimming and production losses associated with bacterial arthritis in lambs presented to an abattoir in southern Australia

Bacterial arthritis in sheep is a painful and debilitating condition that is widespread across all sheep-raising regions and climatic zones of Australia. At slaughter, bacterial arthritis in sheep causes economic losses through the condemnation of all or parts of the carcass, as specified in the Australian Standard for the Hygienic Production and Transportation of Meat and Meat Products for Human Consumption. In this study, we investigated the economic cost of arthritis in lambs presenting to an abattoir in southern Australia using a combination of the prevalence of arthritis detected during meat inspection, condemnation rates, trim weight and carcass weight, and fat measurements. Data were collected on 354 lines of lambs representing 63287 carcasses. One hundred and sixty nine consignments, or approximately one-half of the consignments, had at least one carcass with arthritis/polyarthritis detected by meat inspection personnel. Four hundred and twenty-two, or 0.7%, of the carcasses had arthritis/polyarthritis in at least one joint. When arthritis was present, on average 2.0% of the line was affected. Three carcasses with arthritis were condemned and the remainder trimmed, with an average trim weight of 0.7 kg. In addition, arthritis reduced the growth of lambs by 1.2 kg hot standard carcass weight, approximately 2.7 kg liveweight (assuming 45% dressing percentage) and reduced fat cover by 1.8 mm.