The Value of Current Ante Mortem Meat Inspection and Food Chain Information of Dairy Cows in Relation to Post Mortem Findings and the Protection of Public Health: A Case for a More Risk-Based Meat Inspection.

In this study, the contribution of the ante mortem (AM) inspection and the food chain information (FCI) to ensuring meat safety and public health was investigated, by evaluating the slaughterhouse findings of 223,600 slaughtered dairy cows in the Netherlands. The outcome of this study was that the ante mortem (AM) and post mortem (PM) inspections have a substantial overlap, and that with regard to food safety and public health in over 99% of cases the PM could even be omitted on the basis of the AM. In this study, the data provided by the dairy farmers on the current FCI forms contributed little to nothing with regard to the outcomes of AM and PM inspection. It is concluded that current meat inspection procedures need an update and a more risk-based approach needs to be adopted. Regarding this, the AM inspection of dairy cattle should remain, because it plays an important role in ensuring food safety (e.g., by preventing contamination of the slaughter line by excessively dirty animals, or animals with abscesses), monitoring animal welfare and in detecting some important notifiable diseases. The PM inspection, however, could in many cases be omitted, provided there is a strict AM inspection complemented by a vastly improved (automated) way of obtaining reliable FCI

Small Contaminations on Broiler Carcasses Are More a Quality Matter than a Food Safety Issue

Depending on the interpretation of the European Union (EU) regulations, even marginally visibly contaminated poultry carcasses could be rejected for human consumption due to food safety concerns. However, it is not clear if small contaminations actually increase the already present bacterial load of carcasses to such an extent that the risk for the consumers is seriously elevated. Therefore, the additional contribution to the total microbial load on carcasses by a small but still visible contamination with feces, grains from the crop, and drops of bile and grease from the slaughter line was determined using a Monte Carlo simulation. The bacterial counts (total aerobic plate count, Enterobacteriaceae, Escherichia coli, and Campylobacter spp.) were obtained from the literature and used as input for the Monte Carlo model with 50,000 iterations for each simulation. The Monte Carlo simulation revealed that the presence of minute spots of feces, bile, crop content, and slaughter line grease do not lead to a substantial increase of the already existing biological hazards present on the carcasses and should thus be considered a matter of quality rather than food safety

Performance of four different diagnostic tests for C. difficile infection in piglets

Clostridium difficile is emerging as a pathogen in man as well as in animals. In 2000 it was described as a cause of neonatal enteritis in piglets and it is now the most common cause of neonatal diarrhoea in the USA. In Europe, C. difficile infection (CDI) in neonatal piglets has also been reported. Diagnosis of this infection is based on detection of the bacterium or its toxins A and B

Failure to influence Salmonella enterica serovars, but impaired shedding of Enterobacteriaceae in fattening pigs by using fermented pig feed.

To reduce Salmonella prevalence in pork, measures should be taken throughout the pork production chain, including pigs on the farm. Epidemiological studies showed that the use of fermented feed can significantly reduce Salmonella prevalence in pigs compared to the use of normal feed. Experimental challenge experiments with Salmonella, however, have never been conducted to reveal the efficacy of fermented feed to reduce Salmonella shedding and/or reduce the number of Salmonella positive pigs. A study was conducted to measure the effect of fermented feed on Salmonella enterica serovars In this experiment seeder pigs were used as a mode for Salmonella transmission within a pig herd. The results showed that fermented feed does affect the gastrointestinal ecology (other poster/manuscript present at this symposium), but has no beneficial effect on Salmonella prevalence in pigs

Effect of fermented feed on Enterobacteriaceae and lactobacilli population of the gastrointestinal tract of pigs

Fermented feed contains high amounts of lactic acid and high numbers of lactobacilli. In a pig experiment the influence on the microbial population lactobacilli and Enterbacteriaceae in the gastrointestinal tract of the pig, by fermented feed was investigated. The numbers of Enterobacteriaceae in the contents of the stomach, ileum, caecum, colon, and rectum of pigs fed with fermented feed were significantly lower compared with the contents of the stomach, ileum, caecum, colon and rectum of pigs fed with dry feed. The numbers of total lactobacilli were significantly higher in the stomach contents of pigs fed fermented feed and in the ileum contents of one pig group fed fermented feed compared with the contents of pigs fed with dry feed. However, the influence of lactobacilli on Enterobacteriaceae could not be demonstrated. It was concluded that feeding fermented feed influences the bacterial ecology of the gastrointestinal tract and reduces the levels of Enterobacteriaceae in the different parts of the gastrointestinal tract

Farm evacuation coefficient: A novel indicator in veterinary crisis management

Whenever an area is struck by a massive disaster such as extreme flooding, an earthquake, forest fire or chemical spill, not only people suffer the consequences but also the animal population will be hit severely. A quick search in available literature gives an indication on how veterinary professionals and other emergency responders train and organise themselves to cope with these events in an effort to save as many lives (human beings and animals) as possible. Linnabary and New1 describe in this paper how from the 1950s the principles of disaster medicine were taught in the US veterinary colleges and to military veterinarians, providing various examples and detailed descriptions for emergency responders. In order to be better prepared, Linnabary and New2 also describe the results of a survey of emergency evacuation of dairy cattle. This survey was designed to determine the farmers’ attitudes regarding evacuation, the availability of equipment and personnel, the estimated numbers of cattle, evacuation time, destination and care of evacuated cattle, and any possible alternative in case cattle could not be moved. The results indicated a lack of preparedness and high economic vulnerability of farmers. In their conclusion the authors pleaded for a timely and detailed analysis of the local situation, combined with preplanning and drill exercises to be well prepared in case of an emergency. In the authors’ opinion, local emergency-planning committees should be strengthened with this particular expertise. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Hunt and others3 investigated the psychological effects of the loss of a pet on survivors of the disaster. Pet loss was strongly associated with psychopathology, and the impact of the loss on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) was mediated by acute stress and dissociative symptoms during the evacuation. This suggests that forced abandonment of a companion animal during an evacuation adds

Risico factoren voor dierenwelzijn en voedselveiligheid bij verhogen slachtsnelheid

Naar aanleiding van verschillende incidenten in slachthuizen heeft de Minister van Landbouw, Natuur en Voedselkwaliteit besloten tot een herbezinning van het huidige slachtsysteem. Daarom is een verkennend onderzoek uitgevoerd op basis van wetenschappelijke publicaties, eerdere onderzoeksresultaten en recente internationale wetenschappelijke opinies. Doel van dit onderzoek is antwoord geven op de vragen; 1) Wat zijn de risicofactoren voor dierenwelzijn en voedselveiligheid, 2) wat is de invloed van slachtsnelheid op deze risicofactoren, 3) wordt controle en toezicht op deze risicofactoren voor dierenwelzijn en voedselveiligheid beïnvloed door verhoging van de slachtsnelheid

Farm evacuation coefficient: A novel indicator in veterinary crisis management

Whenever an area is struck by a massive disaster such as extreme flooding, an earthquake, forest fire or chemical spill, not only people suffer the consequences but also the animal population will be hit severely. A quick search in available literature gives an indication on how veterinary professionals and other emergency responders train and organise themselves to cope with these events in an effort to save as many lives (human beings and animals) as possible. Linnabary and New1 describe in this paper how from the 1950s the principles of disaster medicine were taught in the US veterinary colleges and to military veterinarians, providing various examples and detailed descriptions for emergency responders. In order to be better prepared, Linnabary and New2 also describe the results of a survey of emergency evacuation of dairy cattle. This survey was designed to determine the farmers’ attitudes regarding evacuation, the availability of equipment and personnel, the estimated numbers of cattle, evacuation time, destination and care of evacuated cattle, and any possible alternative in case cattle could not be moved. The results indicated a lack of preparedness and high economic vulnerability of farmers. In their conclusion the authors pleaded for a timely and detailed analysis of the local situation, combined with preplanning and drill exercises to be well prepared in case of an emergency. In the authors’ opinion, local emergency-planning committees should be strengthened with this particular expertise. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Hunt and others3 investigated the psychological effects of the loss of a pet on survivors of the disaster. Pet loss was strongly associated with psychopathology, and the impact of the loss on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) was mediated by acute stress and dissociative symptoms during the evacuation. This suggests that forced abandonment of a companion animal during an evacuation adds

Small Contaminations on Broiler Carcasses Are More a Quality Matter than a Food Safety Issue

Depending on the interpretation of the European Union (EU) regulations, even marginally visibly contaminated poultry carcasses could be rejected for human consumption due to food safety concerns. However, it is not clear if small contaminations actually increase the already present bacterial load of carcasses to such an extent that the risk for the consumers is seriously elevated. Therefore, the additional contribution to the total microbial load on carcasses by a small but still visible contamination with feces, grains from the crop, and drops of bile and grease from the slaughter line was determined using a Monte Carlo simulation. The bacterial counts (total aerobic plate count, Enterobacteriaceae, Escherichia coli, and Campylobacter spp.) were obtained from the literature and used as input for the Monte Carlo model with 50,000 iterations for each simulation. The Monte Carlo simulation revealed that the presence of minute spots of feces, bile, crop content, and slaughter line grease do not lead to a substantial increase of the already existing biological hazards present on the carcasses and should thus be considered a matter of quality rather than food safety

The Value of Current Ante Mortem Meat Inspection and Food Chain Information of Dairy Cows in Relation to Post Mortem Findings and the Protection of Public Health: A Case for a More Risk-Based Meat Inspection.

In this study, the contribution of the ante mortem (AM) inspection and the food chain information (FCI) to ensuring meat safety and public health was investigated, by evaluating the slaughterhouse findings of 223,600 slaughtered dairy cows in the Netherlands. The outcome of this study was that the ante mortem (AM) and post mortem (PM) inspections have a substantial overlap, and that with regard to food safety and public health in over 99% of cases the PM could even be omitted on the basis of the AM. In this study, the data provided by the dairy farmers on the current FCI forms contributed little to nothing with regard to the outcomes of AM and PM inspection. It is concluded that current meat inspection procedures need an update and a more risk-based approach needs to be adopted. Regarding this, the AM inspection of dairy cattle should remain, because it plays an important role in ensuring food safety (e.g., by preventing contamination of the slaughter line by excessively dirty animals, or animals with abscesses), monitoring animal welfare and in detecting some important notifiable diseases. The PM inspection, however, could in many cases be omitted, provided there is a strict AM inspection complemented by a vastly improved (automated) way of obtaining reliable FCI