Effect of processing on the microbiological quality and safety of chicken carcasses at slaughterhouse

Microbiological contamination of chicken meat depends on the conditions under which the animals are reared, slaughtered and processed. The aim of this study was to determine the influence of farm origin and processing stages at slaughterhouse on the microbial safety and quality of chicken. Samples of chicken carcasses from three different farms were taken from a slaughterhouse. Mesophiles, Escherichia coli, coagulase positive Staphylococcci counts, presence of Listeria monocytogenes,Campylobacter and Salmonella were determined at five sampling points: after defeathering, after evisceration, after washing, after chilling and after cutting. Chilling reduced log numbers of mesophiles, coagulase positive Staphylococci and E. coli by 0.85, 1.52 and 2.2 log units, respectively. Salmonella was not detected after chilling. High prevalence of Campylobacter spp was observed at all the stages ranging between 84% and 100%. L. monocytogenes was not detected in chicken carcasses after defeathering. However, it was detected after evisceration and after washing and chilling. The most critical stage for L. monocytogenes contamination was the portioning operation, the prevalence in breast and legs being 88% and 84%, respectively.     

Attachment of Salmonella typhimurium to Poultry Skin as Related to Cell Viability

³H-labeled S. typhimurium cells inactivated by gamma-radiation (⁶⁰Co) and by formaldehyde (5%) were used to determine if cell viability affected attachment to poultry skin. Both gamma-irradiated and formal-dehyde-treated cells attached like live cells. There was no difference in attachment between cells grown in a chemically defined medium (SCDM) or in brain heart infusion broth (BHI). Live and gamma-irradiated cells and BHI-grown and SCDM-grown cells had similar surface hydrophobicity. Live and gamma-irradiated cells had similar cell surface charges, whereas BHI and SCDM-grown cells had different surface charges. Differences in cell surface charge did not affect attachment rate.     

Functional and sensory properties of chicken meat from spent-hen carcasses deboned manually or mechanically in Jordan

Samples of chicken meat from spent laying hens were obtained by four different methods: (1) manual deboning of whole carcasses; (2) manual deboning of skinned carcasses; (3) mechanical deboning of whole carcasses; and (4) mechanical deboning of skinned carcasses. The meat was packaged, frozen and stored at ?18 °C for up to 3 months. Functional properties studied were pH, emulsifying capacity (EC) and water‐holding capacity (WHC) and, in addition, pigment concentration was investigated. Sensory properties included aroma, colour, texture and overall acceptability, as judged by a trained panel using a nine‐point hedonic scale. Removal of the skin prior to deboning by either method gave significantly higher values (P < 0.05) for EC, while WHC values were not significantly different among the experimental treatments, despite higher pH values for mechanically‐deboned meat, with and without skin. Pigment concentrations were highest in meat from Treatment 4 and lowest for Treatment 1, but values for both methods of deboning were affected by the presence of skin. There were no significant differences between treatments for any of the sensory properties studied. Changes occurring in the meat during frozen storage are described.     

Evaluation of methods of measurement of nitrogen in poultry and animal manures

Kjeldahl nitrogen (N), total N and forms of inorganic N (ammoniacal (NH₄)-N, nitrate (NO₃)-N and nitrite (NO₂)-N) were measured in a range of animal manures. The manures include fresh samples of poultry manure, sheep manure, horse manure, dairy slurry and pig slurry and composted poultry manure. Kjeldahl N was measured by standard micro-Kjeldahl digestion. For total N measurements, NO₃-N and NO₂-N were recovered during Kjeldahl digestion by pretreatments with various oxidizing and reducing agents. Inorganic forms of N were measured by extraction with 2M KCl solution.Kjeldahl digestion alone allowed measurement only of organic N and NH₄-N. Amongst various modifications to the Kjeldahl, pretreatment with either acidified (H₂SO₄) Zn-CrK(SO₄)₂ or acidified (H₂SO₄) reduced Fe achieved complete recovery of NO₃-N. Nitrite N was only recovered by first oxidising the NO ₂ ^- to NO ₃ ^- with KMnO₄ followed by reduction to NH₄-N with acidified (H₂SO₄) reduced Fe.More than 95% of the total N in fresh animal manure was present as organic N and NH₄-N which were recovered by the standard Kjeldahl digestion. In the case of fresh manures there was no difference between the amount of total N measured by the Kjeldahl digestion and its modified methods. However composting of poultry manure or drying of poultry manure, pig slurry and dairy slurry resulted in an increase in NO₃-N which was not recovered during Kjeldahl digestion alone. Under these conditions the total N could be measured by pretreating the samples with KMnO₄ and reduced Fe prior to Kjeldahl digestion.Drying of animal manures caused a decrease in organic N and NH₄-N, especially in poultry, pig and dairy manures. There was a slight increase in NO₃-N; but most of the decrease in N content with drying was attributed to the volatilization loss of ammonia (NH₃). Amongst various drying methods examined air drying caused maximum loss of N as NH₃ whereas freeze drying caused minimum loss of N. This suggests that fresh animal manures can be freeze dried for analysis of N which causes minimum loss of N.     

养殖场鸡粪废水厌氧发酵产氢性能

在养殖场鸡粪废水中添加米糠提高废水的碳氮比,以经过不同预处理的厌氧活性污泥为接种物,控制发酵温度为36℃,初始pH为5.0,考察污泥预处理及底物质量浓度对发酵产氢的影响,并分析液相末端产物及发酵液化学需氧量(chemical oxygen demand,COD)去除率.研究结果表明,污泥的最佳预处理方法为热处理(100℃下加热15 min),发酵累积生物气产量和氢气产量分别为1 781和1 082.8 mL,是未处理组的2.52和5.85倍;鸡粪废水的适宜质量浓度为10 218 mg/L,此时氢气产量为185.1 mL/g,由Gompertz模型对产气量进行非线性拟合得拟合方程,说明该模型可很好地模拟发酵产氢过程;发酵结束后液相末端产物主要转化为乙酸和丁酸等挥发性有机酸,在不同底物质量浓度下COD去除率随底物质量浓度先增加后减小,在质量浓度为10 218 mg/L时达到26.9%.     

Woody Breast短期贮藏中肉质的变化

为研究近年来速生型肉鸡鸡胸肉硬度缺陷(woody/wooden breast,WB)俗称"木质肉"在短期贮藏中生肉肉质参数的变化。实验选取68只42日龄Cobb 500肉鸡作为研究对象,经宰杀后人工分级为低(normal,NORM)、高(severe,SEV)两组(n=34只/组)。在不同时间节点下(1、3、8 d)对所有样本测定质量、挤压力(compression force,CF)、滴水损失(drip loss,DL)、肌节长度(sarcomere length,SL)及肉破碎化指数(gravimetric fragmentation index,GFI)。对所有参数进行组间(不同WB等级间,不同时间节点)显著性分析,同时对各参数与WB等级间进行相关性分析。结果表明:SEV样本质量、CF、SL、GFI在贮藏时间节点处都显著高于NORM样本(P0.05),DL在1 d时NORM与SEV间无差异,在3~8 d时显著上升(P0.05)。CF、SL、GFI在1~3 d时,所有样本都显著减小(P0.05),3~8 d时CF无显著变化(P0.05),SL、GFI在NORM样本间无差异但在SEV样本间继续减小(P0.05)。相关性分析表明,CF、累积DL与WB等级极显著相关(P0.01),SL、GFI随时间变化与WB硬度减小存在联系。综上可知,SEV生肉肉质较NORM差,WB硬度随贮藏时间变长而减小,但其生肉品质并不会发生改变,因此对WB检测应在宰杀当天在线进行,且WB硬度由多种原因共同作用导致。     

Antimicrobial effect of an Undaria pinnatifida composite film containing vanillin against Escherichia coli and its application in the packaging of smoked chicken breast

To develop a value‐added product, we used the under‐utilised seaweed Undaria pinnatifida as a source material for the fabrication of a biodegradable film by extracting U. pinnatifida protein (UPP). UPP/gelatine composite films with different constituent ratios were prepared. In addition, the UPP/gelatine composite films containing vanillin (0.05%, 0.1% and 0.5%) were prepared as antimicrobial packaging material. To evaluate the utility of the UPP composite film containing 0.5% vanillin as food packaging material, smoked chicken breast samples inoculated with Escherichia coli were packed with the film and stored at 4 °C for 10 days. It was observed that packaging of smoked chicken breast with the UPP composite film containing vanillin decreased the population of the inoculated E. coli by 1.12 log CFU g^?1 compared with that in the control sample. Thus, the UPP/gelatine composite film with added vanillin can be utilised as a packaging material for smoked chicken breast.     

SPS措施影响中国禽肉出口的实证研究

基于1996—2011年间中国与日本、德国和沙特阿拉伯等主要禽肉进口国(地区)的面板数据,运用引力模型修正贸易零值的方法分析了SPS措施对中国禽肉产品出口的影响程度。研究表明,中国禽肉出口除了受进出口GDP变动、贸易距离、进口国关税等因素影响,还受到SPS措施的影响,国外红霉素最大残留量(MRLs)每严格1ppm,中国禽肉出口量就要减少0.408%。推进禽肉生产标准和发达国家标准接轨、实施严格的追溯制度、控制兽药残留水平是中国禽肉出口应对SPS措施的有效策略。     

The effect of hot-water immersions on the appearance and microbiological quality of skin-on chicken-breast pieces

Summary Immersion in hot water is one of many potential methods for reducing levels of pathogenic bacteria on the surface of poultry meat. However, if the meat is to be sold in the raw state reductions in microbiological numbers need to be achieved without changing the appearance of the meat. Samples of vacuum-packed skin-on chicken breast were immersed in hot water for a range of temperatures and times. Samples were then water cooled to arrest further heating. The final appearance of the samples was assessed visually and instrumentally with a chroma meter. Surface and internal temperatures were also measured. From this series of initial experiments a range of maximum temperature–time treatments were identified that would not cause unacceptable changes to surface appearance. Microbiological tests were then conducted on samples inoculated with a nalidixic acid resistant strain of Escherichia coli serotype O80 subjected to these treatments. The results showed that determining changes to the appearance of skin from samples by using a chroma meter was difficult. The changes caused to the samples by heat treatment were initially textural rather than colourimetric and thus could be identified visually but not instrumentally with a chroma meter. Visual changes were found for immersion times greater than 120 s at 50 °C, 60 s at 60 °C, 9 s at 70 °C, 6 s at 80 °C, 2 s at 90 °C and 1 s at 100 °C. The average temperatures measured on the surface after 2 s immersion at 90 °C and after 60 s at 60 °C were 20.5 °C and 54.8 °C, respectively. No reductions in counts of E. coli serotype O80 were measured on samples treated under these conditions. The results indicate that there is no immersion heat treatment (below 90 °C) capable of reducing contamination with E. coli , or similar thermotolerant microorganisms, on poultry without causing adverse changes in the product.