Ready-to-eat Poultry Research Articles

Sensory, Deterioration and Bacteriological Assessment of Some Ready to Eat Poultry Products

This study was carried out to assess the quality of some RTE (ready to eat) chicken meat products collected from different poultry meat processing plants in Menofia and Gharbia governorate. a A total of 60 commercially produced RTE poultry products such as chicken ham, chicken shawarma, chicken with herps, smoked turkey and turkey smoked lobes (12 each) were collected from supermarkets and examined for sensory, deterioration criteria and bacteriological quality. The results revealed that the sensory panel scores of all examined RTE poultry meat products samples were generally low especially in chicken with herps, chicken ham and smoked turkey RTE poultry meat products. Moreover, pH values of most of the examined samples were relatively alkaline whereas the lowest value was recorded in smoked turkey samples and highest value was observed in chicken with herps samples. In addition, higher thiobarbituric acid (smoked turkey) and slightly increases of total volatile basic nitrogen values (chicken with herps) were recorded in most of the examined samples. All investigated bacterial counts were significantly high in all examined RTE poultry meat products samples. Staph. aureus was isolated from chicken ham and E. coli strains were isolated from chicken shawarma, smoked turkey and turkey smoked lobes. However, E. coli O157:H7 and salmonella strains failed to be isolated from all the examined samples. It could be concluded that all the examined RTE poultry meat products were deteriorated in terms of sensory, chemical and bacteriological terms and exceeded the limit described by E.S. (3493/2005) for cooked poultry meat products. In addition, these samples were probably produced and prepared under bad hygienic measures which could be responsible for lowering their quality and reduce shelf life.

Prevalence and antimicrobial resistance patterns of Listeria species isolated from poultry products marketed in Iran

In the present study, a total of 402 poultry product samples composed of raw, ready-to-cook (RTC) and ready-to-eat (RTE) products were examined for the presence of Listeria spp. The total contamination rate with Listeria spp. in poultry products was 33.3% with a higher rate of contamination in warm seasons than in cold seasons. The most species recovered was Listeria innocua (46.3%); the remaining isolates were Listeria monocytogenes (38.8%), Listeria ivanovii (9.7%) and Listeria seeligeri (5.22%). L. monocytogenes was detected in 14.1%, 12.2% and 11.4% of raw, RTC and RTE poultry products, respectively. Serotype 4b (44.9%) was the predominant serotype of L. monocytogenes isolates followed by 1/2a (40.8%), 1/2b (10.2%) and 1/2c (4.08%). Considering seasonal variability, 1/2a was the most prevalent serotype in warm seasons, while 4b was predominant in cold seasons. The Listeria spp. particularly L. monocytogenes isolates were highly resistant to ampicillin, penicillin, fluroquinolones and tetracycline. The results indicate that high prevalence of Listeria spp. especially L. monocytogenes in poultry products, and resistance of the isolates to the antimicrobials commonly used to treat human listeriosis could be a potential health hazard for consumers. In addition, prevalence of L. monocytogenes serotype 4b that involved in the majority of foodborne outbreaks of human listeriosis is a public health concern.

Occurrence of L. monocytogenes in ready-to-eat poultry products available on the German market

Listeria monocytogenes, an important foodborne pathogen, is of great concern especially for the ready-to-eat (RTE) food industry. The purpose of the study was to determine the number of L. monocytogenes in 300 RTE poultry products at their shelf-life expiry date. The samples were examined following the ISO 11290-2:2005 protocol. Overall, 6% and 3% of the analyzed products were positive for Listeria spp. and L. monocytogenes, respectively. The occurrence of L. monocytogenes was significantly (p<0.05) higher in raw RTE poultry products than in heat treated RTE poultry products. The contamination level of L. monocytogenes was <10cfu/g in 94%, between 10 and 100cfu/g in 3% and >100cfu/g in 1% of the samples. L. monocytogenes were isolated from products of various lots from 3 out of 7 manufacturers. All 18 L. monocytogenes belonged to serotype 1/2a and among the isolates only two PFGE patterns were obtained, indicating a common contamination source. This is the first study that surveyed the number of L. monocytogenes in RTE poultry products at the end of their shelf-life. The high frequency of L. monocytogenes found in frankfurters and raw spreadable sausages underlines the need for food manufacturers to regularly control L. monocytogenes in the food processing environment. Consumers should nevertheless be cautious when handling these products. Since poultry products are becoming more and more popular for consumers, regular monitoring is necessary to track the occurrence of the pathogen in RTE poultry products.

Efficacy of freezing, frozen storage and edible antimicrobial coatings used in combination for control of Listeria monocytogenes on roasted turkey stored at chiller temperatures

The presence and growth of Listeria monocytogenes on ready-to-eat (RTE) turkey is an important food safety issue. The antilisterial efficacy of four polysaccharide-based edible coatings (starch, chitosan, alginate and pectin) incorporating sodium lactate (SL) and sodium diacetate (SD) as well as commercial preparations Opti.Form PD4, NovaGARD™ CB1, Protect-M and Guardian™ NR100 were compared against L. monocytogenes on roasted turkey. Pectin coating treatments incorporating SL/SD, Opti.Form PD4 with or without Protect-M, and NovaGARD™ CB1 displayed higher antimicrobial efficacy against.L. monocytogenes than the other antimicrobials and coating materials. In the second phase of the study, it was investigated whether frozen storage could enhance the antilisterial effectiveness of pectin coating treatments on chilled roasted turkey. Inoculated roasted turkey samples coated with pectin-based treatments were frozen for up to 4 weeks and subsequently stored at 4 °C for 8 weeks. Frozen storage significantly enhanced the antilisterial activity of various coating treatments; with selected treatments reducing the L. monocytogenes populations by as much as 1.1 log CFU/cm2 during the subsequent 8-week chilled storage. This study demonstrates that pectin-based antimicrobial edible coatings hold promise in enhancing the safety of RTE poultry products and frozen storage has the potential to enhance their effectiveness.

Application of an active alginate coating to control the growth of Listeria monocytogenes on poached and deli turkey products

The relatively high prevalence of Listeria monocytogenes in ready-to-eat (RTE) turkey products is of great concern. The overall objective of this study was to develop antimicrobial edible coating formulations to effectively control the growth of this pathogen. The antimicrobials studied were nisin (500 IU/g), Novagard CB 1 (0.25%), Guardian NR100 (500 ppm), sodium lactate (SL, 2.4%), sodium diacetate (SD, 0.25%), and potassium sorbate (PS, 0.3%). These were incorporated alone or in binary combinations into five edible coatings: alginate, κ-carrageenan, pectin, xanthan gum, and starch. The coatings were applied onto the surface of home-style poached and processed deli turkey discs inoculated with ~ 3 log CFU/g of L. monocytogenes. The turkey samples were then stored at 22 °C for 7 days. For poached and processed deli turkey, the coatings were found to be equally effective, with pectin being slightly less effective than the others. The most effective poached turkey treatments seemed to be SL (2.4%)/SD (0.25%) and Nisin (500 IU/g)/SL (2.4%), which yielded final populations of 3.0 and 4.9 log CFU/g respectively compared to the control which was 7.9 log CFU/g. For processed deli turkey, the most effective antimicrobial treatments seemed to be Nisin (500 IU/g)/SD (0.25%) and Nisin (500 IU/g)/SL (2.4%) with final populations of 1.5 and 1.7 log CFU/g respectively compared to the control which was 6.5 log CFU/g. In the second phase of the study, home-style poached and store-purchased roasted (deli) turkey inoculated with the pathogen at a level of ~ 3 log CFU/g were coated with alginate incorporating selected antimicrobial combinations and stored for 8 weeks at 4 °C. Alginate coatings supplemented with SL (2.4%)/PS (0.3%) delayed the growth of L. monocytogenes with final counts reaching 4.3 log CFU/g (home-style poached turkey) and 6.5 log CFU/g (roasted deli turkey) respectively while the counts in their untreated counterparts were significantly higher (P < 0.05) reaching 9.9 and 7.9 log CFU/g, respectively. This study therefore demonstrates the effectiveness of using alginate-based antimicrobial coatings to enhance the microbiological safety and quality of RTE poultry products during chilled storage.