Microbial cross-contamination by airborne dispersion and contagion during defeathering of poultry

1. A readily identifiable strain of Escherichia coli K12 was used as a 'marker' organism to determine the sources, routes and patterns of microbial cross-contamination during mechanical defeathering of broiler chicken carcases. 2. Inoculation of scald water with the marker organism led to...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:British poultry science 2003-09, Vol.44 (4), p.567-576
Main Authors: Allen, V.M, Hinton, M.H, Tinker, D.B, Gibson, C, Mead, G.C, Wathes, C.M
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Abattoirs - standards
Air Microbiology
aluminum
Animal Husbandry
Animals
broiler chickens
cross contamination
droplets
Escherichia coli - isolation & purification
Escherichia coli Infections - prevention & control
Escherichia coli Infections - transmission
Escherichia coli Infections - veterinary
Escherichia coli K12
Feathers
microbial contamination
Poultry Diseases - microbiology
Poultry Diseases - prevention & control
Poultry Diseases - transmission
slaughter
spatial distribution
Water
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Summary:1. A readily identifiable strain of Escherichia coli K12 was used as a 'marker' organism to determine the sources, routes and patterns of microbial cross-contamination during mechanical defeathering of broiler chicken carcases. 2. Inoculation of scald water with the marker organism led to a relatively even pattern of carcase contamination during subsequent defeathering. Microbial cross-contamination was greater by this route of inoculation than by either surface inoculation of a 'seeder' carcase or oral inoculation of a live bird one day before slaughter. 3. Dispersal of the marker organism was strongly influenced by the mechanical action of the defeathering machines. Forward transmission of the marker occurred by aerosol or large airborne droplets and particulates such as feathers. Moving carcases through the defeathering machines when these were non-operational clearly reduced backward transmission of the marker. 4. Although microbial dispersal was unaffected by increasing the spacing between individual carcases or installing a water curtain at the entry and exit of the defeathering machines, shielding of carcases with aluminium baffles reduced counts of the marker organism from contaminated carcases by > 90%. 5. The results imply that microbial cross-contamination of broiler chicken carcases during defeathering occurs mainly via the airborne route, which could be contained by physical means.
ISSN:0007-1668
1466-1799
DOI:10.1080/00071660310001616183