Studies on eight carcasses(sheep/goat) for microbial status of meat at different stages of processing viz dressed carcass before after chilling, after boning, cocking, cooking, cooling, slicing, deep freezing, freeze drying, and packing have been carried out. No difference in microbial status has been observed in sheep and goat carcass. The lower (front body) portion of carcass has higher microbial load than the upper portion (hind body). No significant increase in total colony counts was observed on keeping the carcass for 24 hours at 5 degree centigrade. The highest microbial load has been observed on boned meat. The total colony counts (TCC) gets reduced during the process of deep freezing and freeze drying. The precooked, freeze dried meat has TCC up to 266

Rawal, T. N.

Roy, J. B.

Sharma, R. N.

Sharma, T. R.

English

Defence Science Journal

. . .  - .  A . * * -  - BACTERIOLOGICAL STATUS OF MEAT DURING VARIOUS STAGES OF PROCESSING I N  A.F.D. SACKING PLANT * -  4 - - .  T. N. RAWAT,, J. B. ROY, R. N. ~ H A R M A  &i T. R. BHARMA* Accelerated Freeze Drying Factory, PO: TundIa, Distt.: Agra - - (Received 6 October 1971 ; revised 28 July 1972) - - Studis on eight carcasses (sheedgoat) for microbial status of meat a t  different stages of processing viz dressed carcass before and after chilling, after boning, cooking, cooling, slicing, deep freezing, freeze drying, and packing have been carried out. No difference in microbial status has been observed in sheep and goat carcass. The lower (front body) portion of carcass has higher microbial load than the upper portion (hind body). No significant increase in total colony counts was obeerved on keeping the carcass for 24 hours at 5OC. The highest microbial load has Been 'observed on boned meat. The total colony counts (TCC) gets reduced during the process of deep freezing and freeze drying. The precooked, freeze dried meat has TCC up to 266. - The low counts observed all Chrough the various stages are mainly due to the hygienic measures adopted in the processing area. . 1 The increase i_n the rate of ce6trilized prepara,tion of foods and the growth of prepared foods leading to instant foods and Sffier daydrated types of convenient foods, has been extremely rapid in the last few years. Ready-to-serve dehydrated foods are most suited for the Armed Forces. They should have excellent storage properties under all climatic conditions. Dehydration by freeze drying gives a quality that is almost e'qual to the fresh material. The Department &Defertee Prsduetim (ENDIA), has started the manufacture and supply of precooked freeze dried mutton to the armed forces stationed at high altitudes where cooking and transportation of live animals is hazardous. Thisis &ready-to-eat prcrduct and the onIy preparation required is reconstitution in cold orcsipnmering water and wnversion into an edible dish. - * .  - In ths ma~ufao&e of freeze dried mutton from live animals various operations are involved. These are stunning, guillotining, skinning,-evisceration, washing, dressing, storing overnight (at a temperature of 5°C to overcome rigor mortis), boning, cooking, cooling, slicing, deep freezing, freeze drying, and packing the dehydrated produst in A 24 sanit?q cans under nitrogen. - .  - There are large number of potential saurces of infection by microorganisms in the slaughter hall1 arid at othms@es of processing. The qhality of food pro-duct and its subsequent preservation depends upon pre- venting contamination by miereorganisms before, during, and after the processing period. - .  The micrabialstatus of freeze dried mutton is an important parameter in evaluating the quality of the product. While several authors2-8 have discussed the effect of freeze drylng on the m~croflora of animal based on freeze dried products, the aim of the present study is to examine the bacteriologhl qqrialitj of the dressed carcsss at varicrus sampling points and to systematically follow the various stages of processing to pinpoint a sensitive &age which requires stringent control measures to reduce- the counts to the minimum. - . . Eight typical aqimals, comprising 5 goats and 3 sheep conforming to ASC specifications, were seleo-, ted from a factory processing 600 to 7-00 animals (sheeplgoats) per day for the production of Accelerated. Freeze Dried (AFD) mutton. After removal of fascia from the fresh dressed carcass, ten sampling points, as present address: P.Sc.O., D.F.R.L., iIfysor6r ' 85 Dm. Sax. J., VOL. 23, APRIL 1973 indicated in Fig. 1, were selected as described by Danish Meat Research InstituteQ. Sterile aluminium templates of known area were used for sampling by swab method which is similar to that described by AyreslO. The cotton swab were moietened with 0.1% peptone solution. The meat-samples were weighed and blended in sterile 0.1% peptone solution. Serial dilutions were made from the homogenates to obtain bacterial counts. Total Colony Counts (TCC) were obtained after 72 hours of incubation at 37OC in nutrient agar medium. Coliform and staphylococci were also detected by using violet red bile agar and staphylococci 110 media respectively. The figures expressed are microbial counts per . square centimetre on the surface or per gram on i minced meat. Each figure is an average of three or more replicates. To ensure the hygienic quality of water used for washing the carcasses, routine analysis of water was done periodically. The TCC of water was of the order of S/ml. R E B U L T S  A N D  D I S C U S S I O N S '  R I B  Dr. Surkiewiezll, in his bacteriological survey of various prepared food produds, had asserted that line samples and finished product are necessary for pro- per evaluation of bacteriological quality of the finish- ed product. It is a better way to assurel2*13 safety in HANK food products and for quality control programme of any precooked food material. No one group of baoteria could serve as an index for microbial quality of food products. TheTotalColony Counts (TCC) adopted in these studies give the summation of many kinds of contaminants and is most useful for microbial quality control. Coliform and staphylococoi were also determined at all stages of processing. Fig. I-Sampling points in oaroa~.  The details of the ani'mals studied for the purpose are given in Table 1.. The percentage of dressed weight to live weight varied from 38-44%. The dressed weight recorded was without head, knee, and hock joints, and organs I&. kidneys, testis, pancreas, liver, heart, viscera etc. No correlation of ' percentage yield of dressed meat over live weight to sex, age and weight, of the animal could be drawn in this case. The sampling spots selected on the dressed animal are expected to give the best information regard- ing bacterial distribution on the carcasses. RAWAL, et. al. : Bacteriological Status ofMeat The average TCC at various sampling pointsgiven in Table 2 are 17%. Tbe low  were due to the good hygienic measures adopted in the processing area and the fact that the carcasses after post-mortem, were subjected to spray washing aad jet washing at 1100-150 p.s.i. , The TCC of the upper (posterior) portion of the carcass were low in comparison to lower (anterior) portion. The average counts at sampling points 1 to 5 varied from 566 to 1207 while at sampling points 6 to 10 counts varied from 1708 to 3541. Tnis may be due to the fact that after washing, water continues to drip down this portion of the carcass and also due to its nearness to men and equipment on the floor. There was no difference of microbial load between sheep and goat carcass. For a hygienic carcass it is desired that no sampling point should give counts more than 500, and average should be within 300. With a better - hygienic control it is possible to obtain considerably lower counts. Srl Animal Age Sex NO. (years) Weight Dressed Weight Dreased Weight (kg) (kg) Live Weight - ul----------Lll--3------.I-LI------UL- I &at 6 Female 33.0 14.5 44 I11 &at Female 33.0 14.5 44 $ IV &tct 2 Male 25.0 11.0 44 V Sheep 5 Female 26.0 11.0 42.3 VI Sheep 5 Male 37.0 14.5 39.2 VII &beep 1) Female 22.6 8.5 38.0 VIII &at 6 Male 37.5 15.5 41.3 TOTAL UOLONY UOUNTS ON UABUASS BBF8BEl UHILLINU Animals Sampling - - - Average Points I 11 I11 IV v VI VII VIII %ha=. 8c1. J., VOL. 23, APRIL 1973 Sampling was r q w t e d  from adjacent pbdes af the same points after the carcass had been stored for 24 hours a t  5"C, to overcome r i g ~ r  h.ortis (SBe T-able 3). No signifkarst in@rease in TCC over the pr6chilled ones was observed. The trend of microbial load in €he upp6r pnd Iower portions was observed to have been maintained. The slight increase in counts was perhaps due to the fact tnat tne carcasses touched each other aad bacterial growth could take place ipspite af drop .In temperature.-No increase in TC@-was observed on sampling points 1 & 7 whioh lie in the interior and number 5 which is partially inside of careass. . . * - TABLE '3 . - " T p m ~  COLONY COUNTS ON C ~ C A S S  AFTER C ~ L Z N G  . - . ) . . * Animals " Sampling ---- --- ------ ........................ Average Points I I1 I11 IV v VI VII VIII - - - - -- - .  Average 1139 ., 2226 4 1 6  - -  1333 < - - 2 & l  866 1512 2746 2050 - -. - - -  - - -- . -- The TCC of other stages of processing are given in Table 4. In deboned rneat (I g) high counts were observed which may be attributed to handling conditions viz, use of cutting machine, conveyor, belt, knife and unhygienic conditions of workers all con!ributing to bacterial load, The highest bacterial load observed was 40,OI)O/g. In the case of two^carcasses hygienic control measures were adopted during deboning and the counts obtained were 468 and 560. - - - TOTAL COLONY COUNT'S DURING VARIOUS STAGES OT PROCESSIN@ - "  . - .  . . -  - -- 2. . - -  Animals Sampling stage -----_. " ---------------- . . . - ,- - + - - I ^ I I1 I11 IV v YI VII VIII r -  7 - -----i---d-----rrd---r-d-------d----d-d----d---.-.--.-d---- Boned Meat 4333 - -&58 560 1377 2444 ' - ' 2888 - - 1999 40000 1 A&er Cooking - - Nil -Mil -N?l Nil Nil - Nil Nil Nil Before Slicing - 66 ,-- Nil , & l l l Z  1000 - -  - 33 Nil . 1200 After Slicing. - 200 - 1133 . 350. 7000 5222 160 , -800 el633 After Freezing I& done - 66 88 171 175 - 50 50 25 After Freeze Drying - - - - ,- 100 - 50 -60 83 - 83 - - -  55 ; - - 5 5  C - 6 6  ~ f i e r  Packing .. . 266 166 $66- 200 200 , 200 200 , 233 RAW& ex. a$. : Bacteriological St66us of Meat The deboned meat becomes sterile during cooking in steam cabinets at 85' to SO'€!-for a specified period, this is then pressed into blocks and cooled overnight to facilitate slicing. The sliced,pieces are steamed for a couple of minutes to minimise bacterial build up due to manual handling during this operation. An average ' TCC of 2062 was observed a t  this stage. The TQC? reduces durihg freezing at -30°C and freeze drying. Ths averJge TCC of ths packed product was 204. In order to assess further the microbial quality of carcasses,lmeat at various stages of processing, inci- dence of staphylocosci and ooliforms was also determined along with the TCC on four different carcasses. - The average values obtained are as follows: Microorganismslcc~ or gm Sampling stage -------- -----A----- --- -- T.C.C. Staphylococci Goliforms -.-------------4----.--.-31--- -..-----.------------ ---- Drassed Carcass 2170 760 380 Set Carcass 2000 640 70 Deboned Meat 30000 1600 1600 ---.-. Coagulase +ve and st~bphylococoi were observed in very small numbers. In subsequent stages of pro- cessing no staphylooocci, streptococci, or coliforms was observed. The batches produced during the last three yeara were regularly analysed for total counts a ~ d  the figures obtained are less than 2000 countslg. Coliform and micrococci have never been observed. \ The total counts obtained at different stages of processing were low which indicates a high standard ' of personnel and establishment hygiene. A bacberiological survey of the processing area and its environ- ments has been cornmuni~ated~~. These TCC may not be taken as a guide l~ne  for specification purposes as the production as pet is half of its stipulated capacity. When the capacity is increased, the standard of nygiene inay not be tenable due to increased traffic of men and materials within the processing area. The Commonwealth Food Specification for identical p~odricts is: bacterial counts not more than 20,000/6, ccliform less than 10/g, yeast and moulds l e ~ s  than 100, coagulase positive, saphylococci and salmonella nll. It is also pertinent to point out that tEese . fin;ures relate to temperate %r~d cold climate where generally it is easier to have reduced TCC, when compared with tropical areas. A C K N O W L E D G E M E N T S  /--- ?he mthorsare grateful to Shri S. K. Dutt, General Manager, A.F.D. Factory for his kind er\courage- merit in this work. We are also thankful to Maj. a. 9. Bali, RVC, for his valuable suggestions in this study. R E F E R E N C E S  1. EMPEY, W. A. & SUOTT, W. J., Investigations oq chilled beef Part I., Microbial contamination acquired in the meat works, Bull. Council, Sci. Industr. Res., Australia, No. 126 (1939). 2. ARPAI, J., & BANHEOYIORA, M., Nicrobiological colisiderations in freeze dried foods "Paper a t  the Second Inter- national Food Science and Technology Conference, Worszwa, Poland", 22-27 Aug (paper No. C.3.21), 1966. 2. WELLS, F. G., RUBART, R. C.,  JOHNSON, K. R.,' & SCHARTZ, E. P., Effects of freeze drying and storage on of bacteria in foods "Paper presented at  the 25th annual meeting of the Institute of Food Technologists, Kansas City, M.O.", , 16-20 May, Abstract paper 163 (1965). 4. MAY, K. N., & KELLY, L. E., Applied Nicrobiol., 13(3) (1965), 344. 5. L ~ U R O ,  Q., SPARNIGHT, M. L% SMLTII, F. W., Microbial survival during freeze drying and air drying of foods, '*Paper presented at  the 25th annual meeting of the Instituteof Food Technologists, Kansas City, M.O.", 16-20 May, Abstract paper 162 (1965). 6. MUINTOSEI, A. H., PABLO, I. S., SILVJQRWAN, G). J. & ~~DLDBLITH, S. A., Influence of Protein, temperature and atmosphere during storage on the survival of microorganisms in freeze dried foods, "Paper presented at  the 24th annual meeting of the Institute of food Technologists, Washington, D.C.", 24-28 May, Abstract Paper 136 (1964). 

Bacteriological Status Of Meat During Various Stages Of Processing In AFD Packing Plant

https://publications.drdo.gov.in/ojs/index.php/dsj/article/download/6471/3527

Bacteriological Status Of Meat During Various Stages Of Processing In AFD Packing Plant

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

Defence Science Journal