SHELF-LIFE OF HALAL FRESH SLICED BEEF AND MINCED MEAT

Microbiological and chemical-physical characterization of Halal beef fresh and minced meat, vacuum-packaged and stored at +2°C and +8°C, were examined, at 0, 7, 14 and 21 days, to evaluate the shelf-life. Lactic Acid Bacteria and Coliforms were higher in samples stored at +8 °C, particularly in minced meat. Pseudomonas were the most prevalent flora in all the products, and the contamination level, above 4 log10 cfu/g, were reached at 7 days in all the samples and was maintained during the study. The shelf-life can be extended reducing the storage temperature (< +2°C), and improving the packaging conditions

CHARACTERIZATION OF PATHOGENIC E. COLI ISOLATED IN SHEEP AT SLAUGHTERHOUSE

Fleeces, carcass surface, mucosal gut and faeces samples, collected from 95 slaughtered sheep and lambs from three abattoirs, were examined. The aim of this study was: 1) to evaluate the prevalence of the Verocytotoxic E. coli (VTEC); 2) to obtain virulence profile (stx1, stx2, hlyA and eae) by multiplex PCR; 3) to define the ovine-specific serogroup pathogenic power for the humans. An overall prevalence of 11.1% (adults 14%, lambs 7.8%) was found by direct PCR test. The VTEC occurrence was 18.9% in fleeces, 14.7% on carcasses and 10.5% in mucosal gut. According to the multiplex PCR the following results were obtained: 21% of the isolates belonged to VTEC pathogroup, within 92% were EHEC; 37.9% were identified as EPEC pathogroup. Forty one % of the strains were negative for all the genes. None of the isolates belonged to O157 and 0146 serogroups, while the 57% resulted O91

FOOD SAFETY AND PROCESS HYGIENE CRITERIONS ON SHEEP CARCASSES

The hygienic status and the presence of some pathogens (Staphylococcus aureus, Listeria monocytogenes e Salmonella spp.) at slaughterhouses was evaluated in different matrix of sheep and lambs (carcass surface, faeces, fleeces and mesenteric lymph nodes) according to the Com. Reg. (EC) No 2073/2005. The 48% of sheep and 68.9% of lamb sampled carcasses resulted allocated into the marginal category for Aerobic colony count, while the 28% and 42.2% respectively were allocated into unacceptable category for Enterobacteriaceae. S.aureus was isolated more frequently in fleeces (11.5%), carcasses (12.6%) of lambs than sheep. L. monocytogenes was found in fleeces and carcass of two sheep and in faeces of four lambs, while Salmonella spp. was detected only in sheep carcasses of a single plant

Evolution of chemical-physical parameters and rheological characteristics of Sarda and Maltese goat dry hams

In Sardinia, goat farming is a very important resource. Sarda and Maltese breed are reared mainly for milk production and for suckling kids meat, while meat from adult goats is undervalued. The use of adult goat meat to obtain ripened ham will contribute to safeguard the Sardinian goat supply chain. The aim of the present study was to characterize Sarda and Maltese goat dry ham in order to evaluate the quality of autochthonous goat breed meat. Chemical-physical characteristics were determined dur-ing the production stages, while the rheological and colour parameters and the composition of the goat ham were determined at the end of ripening. The pH evolution during processing were similar to other cured meat products, e.g. sheep hams, even though the values were high, especially in the products from Sarda breed. The aw value regularly decreased during processing. Colour parameters (L*, a*, b*) in the hams from Maltese goat breed were significantly (P<0.05) higher than in those from Sarda. The Sarda goat ham showed a significantly lower percentage of moisture (42% vs 52%), an higher protein content (44.35% vs 34.19%), while no differences were pointed out in the total fat content. Among the ham rheological properties, hardness parameters showed higher levels (13850.22±7589.92 vs 11073.99±6481.31, respectively in Sarda and Maltese hams) in comparison to similar products from pork and sheep, while adhesiveness value was lower. The results show that the quality parameters of goat ripened hams are affected mainly by the charac-teristics of the goat meat, in relation on the breed and the breeding system, and, less, by the traditional technology

CHARACTERIZATION OF PATHOGENIC E. COLI ISOLATED IN SHEEP AT SLAUGHTERHOUSE

Fleeces, carcass surface, mucosal gut and faeces samples, collected from 95 slaughtered sheep and lambs from three abattoirs, were examined. The aim of this study was: 1) to evaluate the prevalence of the Verocytotoxic E. coli (VTEC); 2) to obtain virulence profile (stx1, stx2, hlyA and eae) by multiplex PCR; 3) to define the ovine-specific serogroup pathogenic power for the humans. An overall prevalence of 11.1% (adults 14%, lambs 7.8%) was found by direct PCR test. The VTEC occurrence was 18.9% in fleeces, 14.7% on carcasses and 10.5% in mucosal gut. According to the multiplex PCR the following results were obtained: 21% of the isolates belonged to VTEC pathogroup, within 92% were EHEC; 37.9% were identified as EPEC pathogroup. Forty one % of the strains were negative for all the genes. None of the isolates belonged to O157 and 0146 serogroups, while the 57% resulted O91

Lawrie's Meat Science

Il libro descrive lo stato dell'arte sui fattori che influenzano la qualit\ue0, le caratteristiche e la sicurezza delle carn

Lawrie's Scienza della Carne

Il testo affronta le seguenti tematiche inerenti la scienza della carne: fattori che influenzano la crescita e lo sviluppo degli animali da carne; struttura e sviluppo del muscolo; composizione chimica e biochimica del muscolo; trasformazione del muscolo in carne; deterioramento della carne ad opera di microrganismi infettanti; stoccaggio e conservazione della carne; qualità della carne; carne ed alimentazione umana; carni ristrutturate

SHORT FOOD SUPPLY CHAIN IN SARDINIA: FORMS OF COOPERATION BETWEEN PRIMARY PRODUCERS AND FINAL CONSUMERS

The diffusion of the short food supply chains in Sardinia, at present, is not the same as in other Italian regions. Several structural and economic conditions of the Regional food supply chain, prevent an extensive diffusion. Forms of cooperation between primary producers and final consumers, as the responsible buying groups, will promote the shortening of the food supply chain, offering to the primary producers an alternative way of marketing for the wide array of locally grown farm produce

SALMONELLA SPP. IN SEVERAL TISSUES AND PIG CARCASSES AND IN SLAUGHTERHOUSES: PRELIMINARY RESULTS

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the sources of direct and cross-contamination by Salmonella spp. of swine meat at slaughterhouse. The study was carried out in 4 plants of Sardinia, where pigs of different origin (Regional, Nederland, Spain, France) were slaughtered. Two-hundred ninetyfour samples were examined for Salmonella spp.: samples of caecal material, tonsils and limphonodes, carcass and liver, from 67 pigs randomly selected, and 21 environmental samples were collected. A selection of strains were submitted to phenotypical identification (API ID32E) and serotyping (N.R.C. for Salmonellosis). Salmonella spp. was isolated from the 21,4% of samples, both from pigs and environmental samples. The highest prevalence was observed in limphonodes samples (37,3%), whereas the lowest on the carcasses (10,4%). Eight different serotypes were detected, the more common was S. Derby (67%), followed by S. Livingstone (8%) and S. Typhimurium (6,3%). The 8% of the strains were unknown serotype. Our preliminary results confirm the important role of pigs in the diffusion of Salmonella in the slaughterhouses. The recovering of unusual serotypes from liver surfaces and slaughterhouse environments, pointed out the importance of a better Good Slaughtering Practices application by the workers, in order to prevent the possibility of crosscontamination of raw meats