Microbial Contamination in Meat

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DISCUSSION
Microbial contamination in meat depend on the way the animal is slaughtered and eviscerated and the means by which the meat is normally handled and stored in terms of time and temperature. They also rely on sanitized conditions in the slaughterhouses (Brown and Baird-Parker, 1982).
Chemicals, salt, low temperature, heat and irradiation practices have been used to eradicate, slow down or decrease pathogens in food and food products. Antimicrobials organic agent of organic acids such as lactic acid, and acetic acid have been used as food preservatives and are usually documented as safe (GRAS) (Branen et al., 1990). Lactic and acetic acids are generally used in the beef meat industry to decrease the microbial population in the carcasses (Berry and Cutter, 2000) but same time some drawbacks like colour changes in the skin, acidic feel and odour reported to the meat and also acid adaptation, resistance and tolerance of food-borne disease causing bacteria.
In the present study, enumerate the bacterial population on chicken meat which collected in different location and control of E. coli and S. aureus by acetic acid, lactic and citric acid.
The total mesophiles mean log value in roadside outlets, roadside outlets near ditch, non roadside outlet and non roadside outlets with moderate facilities were 5.05, 6.08, 4.21 and 3.10 log10 cfu/g respectively which were similar to those noted by Fliss et al. (1991) and Chaiba et al. (2007).
Chaiba et al. (2007) reported that psychrotrophic microbial loads were 4.48 log10 cfu/g (3.67 log10 cfu/cm2), 4.36 log10 cfu/g (3.55 log10 cfu/cm2), 4.07 log10 cfu/g (3.26 log10 cfu/cm2) and 4.02 log10 cfu/g (3.21 log10 cfu/cm2) in samples procured from popular market, artisanal slaughterhouses, p...

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...aureus 85.42, followed by 70.67 by lactic acid and 70% by citric acid at 2% concentration. The general sanitary conditions in the meat shops in addition to poor hygienic practices by the butchers are probable contributors to the microbial contamination on the chicken. Microbial loads in meat depend on the way the animal is slaughtered and eviscerated and the way by which the meat is generally handled and stored in terms of time and temperature. They also depend on hygienic conditions in the slaughterhouses. The spoilage of chicken is due to microbial growth and metabolic activities of bacteria. Finally, the use of organic acids to wash or sanitize chicken meat will not eliminate the pathogen aerobic total count completely, but will reduce the number of most harmful pathogens and microbial loads on meat carcasses, which will increase the shelf life and meat quality.

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