8 Oct 2018
Salmonella enterica ser. Typhimurium is responsible for over 1 million cases of food poisoning per year in the USA and is the leading cause of death due to food borne infection. On-going analysis of meat juice at Irish abattoirs indicates that the prevalence of antibodies to the common Salmonella species at pig level is approximately 20%, with a slight reduction in summer months (indicating that one out of every 5 pigs has come into direct contact with a Salmonella bacterium during its lifetime).
Within the abattoir environment the accidental laceration of intestines potentially exposes the carcass and neighbouring carcases to bacteria that are otherwise resident within the gut of a healthy pig. A reduction in the intestinal carriage of Salmonella species would be expected to reduce the incidence of carcase contamination within the abattoir that may occur during the evisceration process.
Read on for more, including risk factors.