TY - JOUR
T1 - Microbial populations on hides of grazing steers in a forage-based production system in Uruguay
AU - Rovira, Pablo J.
AU - Velazco, José I.
PY - 2008/9
Y1 - 2008/9
N2 - The objective of the study was to evaluate the microbiological status of hides of grazing steers in a typical forage-based system in Uruguay. The study was conducted on a single farm with samples taken on 3 days during the spring of 2007. Four anatomical hide sites (perineum area, flank, back, and shoulder) of 10 steers were individually swabbed each sampling day at the farm environment (n = 120). Each sample was analyzed by the Laboratorio Tecnologico del Uruguay for aerobic plate counts (APC), total coliform counts (TCC), and Escherichia coli counts (ECC). Mean log values for APC, TCC, and ECC on external animal hide surfaces, across all sampling sites, were 5.52, 1.89, and 1.70 log CFU/cm 2, respectively. There were no significant differences among bacterial counts from the four hide surface locations. Mean log values for APC, TCC, and ECC were 1.49, 1.15, and 1.12 log CFU/cm2 lower, respectively, on sampling day 2 than on sampling day 3. Microbial populations on hides of grazing steers are highly variable and dependent on climatic and environmental conditions. To our knowledge this is the first study published evaluating the hygienic conditions of grazing livestock operations in Uruguay and their potential implications on the red meat chain.
AB - The objective of the study was to evaluate the microbiological status of hides of grazing steers in a typical forage-based system in Uruguay. The study was conducted on a single farm with samples taken on 3 days during the spring of 2007. Four anatomical hide sites (perineum area, flank, back, and shoulder) of 10 steers were individually swabbed each sampling day at the farm environment (n = 120). Each sample was analyzed by the Laboratorio Tecnologico del Uruguay for aerobic plate counts (APC), total coliform counts (TCC), and Escherichia coli counts (ECC). Mean log values for APC, TCC, and ECC on external animal hide surfaces, across all sampling sites, were 5.52, 1.89, and 1.70 log CFU/cm 2, respectively. There were no significant differences among bacterial counts from the four hide surface locations. Mean log values for APC, TCC, and ECC were 1.49, 1.15, and 1.12 log CFU/cm2 lower, respectively, on sampling day 2 than on sampling day 3. Microbial populations on hides of grazing steers are highly variable and dependent on climatic and environmental conditions. To our knowledge this is the first study published evaluating the hygienic conditions of grazing livestock operations in Uruguay and their potential implications on the red meat chain.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=51949083188&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.4315/0362-028X-71.9.1919
DO - 10.4315/0362-028X-71.9.1919
M3 - Artículo
C2 - 18810879
AN - SCOPUS:51949083188
SN - 0362-028X
VL - 71
SP - 1919
EP - 1921
JO - Journal of Food Protection
JF - Journal of Food Protection
IS - 9
ER -