SIGNIFICANCE OF FEEDING ANIMALS IN EVALUATION OF HYGIENIC QUALITY OF FOOD

Hranidba životinja predstavlja osnovicu stočarske proizvodnje. Poznato je da u suvremenoj stočarskoj proizvodnji postoje određeni sustavi hranidbe pojedinih životinja te da se u tom smislu sastav stočne hrane prilagođje potrebama dotičnog uzgoja (za meso, mlijeko, jaja i dr.). Takva intenzivna proizvodnja uključuje primjenu različitih dodataka u smislu poboljšanja prinosa, boljeg nutricionističkog sastava namirnica animalnog podrijetla te utjecaja na probavljivost kao i dijetetske vrijednosti gotovog proizvoda. Ipak, treba naglasiti da takva proizvodnja nosi u sebi značajne rizike. Uporaba kemijskih sredstava u zaštiti bilja te uporaba veterinarskih lijekova u hrani za životinje najznačajniji su načini kemijskog onečišćenja animalnih namirnica i time ugroze zdravlja ljudi. Posebno treba naglasiti opasnosti onečišćenja od industrijskih zagađivala poput PCB i kovina koji putem stočne hrane i namirnica animalnog podrijetla dospijevaju u organizam čovjeka. Osim navedenih tvari značajan problem u veterinarskom javnom zdravstvu predstavljaju mikotoksini koji na jednak način, od onečišćenih krmiva preko životinja, ugrožavaju zdravlje ljudi. Spomenuta se onečišćenja zajedno s enteropatogenim i drugim bakterijama (Salmonella spp., Campylobacter spp., Listeria spp. i dr.) probijaju u prehrambenom lancu. Provođenjem sustavne kontrole „od polja do stola“ te dobre proizvođačke i veterinarske prakse mogu se smanjiti rizici od stataka navedenih tvari u namirnicama životinjskog podrijetla, što je prema legislativi EU i obveza u pogledu zaštite zdravlja ljudi. Kriteriji zdravstvene ispravnosti hrane za životinje sve su bliži kriterijima zdravstvene ispravnosti namirnica, što ukazuje na značenje utjecaja hranidbe životinja na sigurnost namirnica životinjskog podrijetla. Propis koji regulira ocjenu zdravstvene ispravnosti hrane i hrane za životinje od 2003. godine jest Zakon o hrani. Njime se u R. Hrvatskoj uređuju opća načela i zahtjevi koji se odnose na higijenu i zdravstvenu ispravnost hrane i hrane za životinje te obveze subjekata u poslovanju s hranom i poslovanju s hranom za životinje.Feeding animals presents the basics in animal production. It is well known that in modern animal production there exist certain systems in feeding specific animals and that in that respect composition of feed is adjusted to the needs of specific breeding (for meat, milk, eggs etc). Such intensive production includes application of different additives in order to improve yield, to achieve better nutritional value of feed of animal origin and to affect digestion as well as dietetic value of the finished product. However, it must be noted that such production brings certain risks as well. Use of chemical agents in order to protect plants and use of veterinary drugs in feed are the most important ways of chemical contamination of food of animal origin presenting possible hazards to human health. It is also necessary to mention the contamination caused by industrial contaminants such as PCB and metals that through feed and food of animal origin come to human organism. Besides the aforementioned chemical stuffs, significant problem in veterinary public health are the mycotoxins, which in the same way, from contaminated feed through animals, are the risk for the human health. All the mentioned contamination, together with entheropathogenic and other bacteria (Salmonella spp., Campylobacter spp., Listeria spp etc.) are present in the food chain. Regular control „from field to table“ together with Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) and Good Veterinary Practice (GVP) can lead to reduction of residual contamination in foodstuff of animal origin, that is, according to the EU laws, necessary in the protection of human health. Criteria for hygienic quality of feed are getting closer to the proposed criteria for animal food, indicating the importance of the effect of feeding animals food safety. In the Republic of Croatia the Food Law (NN (NN 117/03) is the basic regulation considering the hygienic quality and safety of food and animal feed

HOME-MADE FERMENTED SAUSAGES - MICROBIOLOGICAL QUALITY

U ovom radu istražene su mikrobiološke promjene tijekom 90-dnevnog zrenja tradicionalnih fermentiranih kobasica proizvedenih u domaćinstvu. U sirovini i kobasicama određivan je broj aerobnih mezofilnih bakterija, bakterija mliječne kiseline, koagulaza negativnih koka, enterokoka, kvasaca, sulfitreducirajućih klostridija, enterobakterija, S. aureus, Pseudomonas spp., te prisutnost Salmonella spp. i Listeria monocytogenes primjenom standardnih mikrobioloških metoda. U mesu, masnom tkivu te pripremljenom nadjevu zabilježeno je značajno mikrobiološko onečišćenje – enterobakterijama (3,47- 3,54 log10 CFU/g), enterokokima (2,00-4,43 log10 CFU/g), klostridijama (1-2 log10 CFU/g) i S. aureus (2,6-3,47 log10 CFU/g). U nadjevu kobasica tijekom zrenja broj se bakterija mliječne kiseline s početnih 4,5 log10 CFU/g višestruko povećao do 21. dana i ostao ustaljen (8 log10 CFU/g) do kraja proizvodnog procesa (90. dan). Promjene ukupnog broja bakterija pratile su trend promjena bakterija mliječne kiseline. Populacija enterokoka se nakon 21. dana zrenja smanjivala progresivno i u gotovom proizvodu bila za 1,7 log manja u odnosu na početni broj. Populacija kvasaca (> 5 log10 CFU/g) i koagulaza negativnih koka (3,5 log10 CFU/g) nije se značajno mijenjala tijekom zrenja. Enterobakterije su utvrđene u nadjevu do 60. dana, S. aureus do 33. dana, a sulfitreducirajuće klostridije do 8. dana zrenja. U odnosu na istraživanja industrijskih brzofermentiranih kobasica, tradicionalno proizvedene kobasice u domaćinstvu pokazuju lošiju higijensku kakvoću sirovine i pripremljenog nadjeva, te polaganiji proces acidifikacije s posljedičnim sporijim potiskivanjem nepoželjne mikroflore. Mikrobiološki nalaz kobasica na kraju proizvodnog procesa zadovoljavao je odredbe Pravilnika o mikrobiološkim standardima za namirnice (NN 46/94; 20/01; 40/01; 125/03; 32/04).In this study microbiological changes during 90-day ripening period of traditional home-made fermented sausages were investigated. Total viable count, lactic acid bacteria, coagulase negative cocci, enterococci, yeasts, sulphitereducing clostridia, enterobacteria, S. aureus, Pseudomonas spp., Salmonella spp and L. monocytogenes were determined in raw materials and sausage mixture using standard microbiological methods. In meat, fat tissue and prepared sausage mixture significant microbiological contamination was observed – due enterobacteria (3,47- 3,54 log10 CFU/g), enterococci (2,00-4,43 log10 CFU/g), clostridia (1-2 log10 CFU/g) and S. aureus (2,6-3,47 log10 CFU/g). During the ripening of sausages lactic acid bacteria count increased from initial 4,5 log10 CFU/g to > 8 log10 CFU/g towards 21st day and remaind constant till the end of process (90th day). Changes in total viable cound followed the trend of succession of lactic acid bacteria. Enterococci decreased continuously after 21st days resulting in 1,7 log lower number in final products comparing to initial population. Yeast (> 5 log10 CFU/g) and coagulase negative cocci count (3,5 log10 CFU/g) didn’t changed significantly during the ripening. Enterobacteria, S. aureus and clostridia were found until day 60, 33 and 8, respectively. With regard to studies of industrial fast-fermented sausages, traditional home-made sausages showed inferior hygienic quality of raw materials and prepared sausage mixture, as well as slower acidification and delayed elimination of undesirable microflora. Microbiological finding at the end of manufacturing process complied provisions of Croatian Regulation on microbiological standards for foodstuffs (NN 46/94; 20/01; 40/01; 125/03; 32/04)

Dietary exposure assessment of ß-lactam antibiotic residues in milk on Croatian market

This paper presents the preliminary screening report of the occurrence of β-lactam antibiotic residues in milk on Croatian market. The intensive animal production sometimes leads to the unavoidable presence of residues of veterinary drugs in food. However, it is possible to reduce the presence of residues in foods of animal origin by using the principles of good veterinary and good manufacturing practices, continuous control of food and using risk assessment approach. Method used for determination of these antibiotics were validated according to the guidelines laid down by European Commission Decision 2002/657/EC. The estimated dietary exposure based on the data on average consumption of milk and the estimated concentration of amoxicillin, ampicillin, benzylpenicillin, cloxacillin, cephapirin, cefazolin, cefoperazone and ceftiofur does not exceed relevant toxicological reference value (acceptable daily intake). These indicate that milk on Croatian market contain very low levels of β-lactam antibiotic residues and toxsicological risk with regard to consuming of milk could not be considered as a public health problem

Prediction of foal individual primal cuts yield using video image analysis

The aim of this work was to use video image analysis (VIA) technology to predict the individual primal cuts of the equine carcass. For this study, a total of 42 foal carcasses were dissected into eight primal cuts (shoulder, top blade, chuck tender, chuck, neck, blade, fore shank and brisket) from the forequarter (FQ) and eleven primal cuts (full plate, loin, tenderloin, topside, eye of round, hind shank, knuckle, flank steak, tri-tip, silverside and heel of round) from the hindquarter (HQ). The proportion of primal cuts in the total carcass ranged from 0.27% to 4.84% for the blade and shoulder in the FQ, and from 0.97% to 8.60% for the heel of round and full plate in the HQ, respectively. The neck and fore shank were the cuts for which the estimation models were most accurate in the models. These included cold carcass weight (CCW) and VIA measurements obtained in both views and had a prediction to deviation (RPD) values of 1.85 and 1.90, respectively. On the other hand, the prediction of the topside cut was the one that presented high accuracy (k-fold-R2 = 0.829) and precision (RMSEcv = 0.23%) with a RPD of 2.85, which suggests a very good predictive ability of the model. Finally, it can be concluded that it is possible to explain the variation of the primal cuts yield in foals with CCW and VIA measurements, and to use this technique as a prediction tool

Bioprotective cultures

Meat products and processed meats resulted from the need to preserve meat in ancient times. Preservative and palatability effects must have been discovered after mixing comminuted fresh meat with salt contaminated with nitrate, spices, or herbs, stuffing the mixture into animal intestines, and then drying it. Early humans were certainly aware of the preservative value of salt and drying, and therefore over the centuries they were able to develop cured products. Although bibliographical research traces the origin of fermented meat products to more than 2500 years ago in China, evidence of sausage production in Europe is first documented in ancient Greece, where it may have been encouraged by the existing climate conditions (Liepe, 1983). Knowledge of the preservation of meat (dry-cured ham and fermented sausages) was inherited by the Romans, and from them these products spread to Central, Eastern, and Northern European countries, as well as to America and Australia, where they are recognized as the heritage of European immigrants (Demeyer, 2004; Fadda & Vignolo, 2007). Consumer perception of food has changed throughout history. Before the 20th century, during the “survival food age,” humankind mostly lived for food. With the technological, scientific, communications, and transportation progress made during the 20th century, however, access to food was no longer a problem for sustainable societies. After World War II, convenience foods (ready-to-eat (RTE) and shelf-stable products) saw their beginnings in North America, while more recently, health-oriented food and nutraceuticals have become major consumer concerns, giving rise to the “functional food era” in the 21st century. Although concerns over food safety are increasing worldwide and are priority issues for governments, food processors, industry, traders, and consumers, quality is the ultimate criterion of desirability for any food product. The overall quality of a food depends on sensorial attributes, which are assessed both objectively and subjectively. Since consumers demand high-quality, preservative-free, safe, and minimally processed foods with extended shelf lives, and since legislation has restricted the use and the permitted levels of some approved preservatives in certain foods, both consumer and legislative needs call for innovative approaches to food preservation. Biological preservation has gained increasing attention as a means of naturally controlling the shelf life and safety of foods; thus, the use of bioprotective cultures to ensure the hygienic quality of food has become a promising tool. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) have been extensively exploited for thousands of years in the production of fermented foods, due both to their inhibitory capacity and their ability to produce desirable taste, flavor, and texture changes. Since LAB naturally dominate the microbiota of raw materials and fermented foods, they are assumed not to pose a health risk for humans (generally recognized as safe, (GRAS)).Fil: Vignolo, Graciela Margarita. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Centro de Referencia para Lactobacilos; ArgentinaFil: Castellano, Patricia Haydee. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Centro de Referencia para Lactobacilos; ArgentinaFil: Fadda, Silvina G.. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Centro de Referencia para Lactobacilos; Argentin