Association between slaughter practices and the distribution of Salmonella, ESBL/AMPC-producing Escherichia coli and hygiene indicator bacteria on pig carcasses after slaughter

Pigs are well-known asymptomatic carriers of foodborne pathogens, which may contaminate pork carcasses during slaughter. Several pig body parts (e.g. the oral cavity, the palatine tonsils and the gastro-intestinal tract) are natural reservoirs of bacteria, including important human pathogens such as Salmonella. The contamination level of a pig carcass is generally expressed as one value for the whole carcass. However, contamination levels may vary between different carcass areas

Comparing overflow and wave-overtopping induced breach initiation mechanisms in an embankment breach experiment

As part of the SAFElevee project Delft University of Technology collabored with Flanders Hydraulics Research, and Infram B.V. in the preperation and execution of a full scale embankment breach experiment in November 2015. This breach experiment was performed on an 3.5m high embankment with a sand core and clay outer layer situated along the tidal river Scheldt in Belgium near Schellebelle. During the experiment a wave overtopping simulator and overflow simulator were used to initiate a breach. Both simulators were placed near the top of the waterside slope. The use of the simulators facilitated comparison between the effects of continueous overflow and the effects of intermittent wave overtopping. This paper presents the data collected during the experiment, describe the development of hypotheses on the failure processes using the latest insights, and comment on the failure initiation process of a grass covered flood embankment with a clay outer layer and a sandy core