Comprehensive Evaluation and Implementation of Improvement Actions in Butcher Shops

Abstract

Foodborne pathogens can cause acute and chronic diseases and produce a wide range of symptoms. Since the consumption of ground beef is a risk factor for infections with some bacterial pathogens, we performed a comprehensive evaluation of butcher shops, implemented improvement actions for both butcher shops and consumers, and verified the impact of those actions implemented. A comprehensive evaluation was made and risk was quantified on a 1–100 scale as high-risk (1–40), moderate-risk (41–70) or low-risk (71–100). A total of 172 raw ground beef and 672 environmental samples were collected from 86 butcher shops during the evaluation (2010–2011) and verification (2013) stages of the study. Ground beef samples were analyzed for mesophilic aerobic organisms, Escherichia coli and coagulase-positive Staphylococcus aureus enumeration. Salmonella spp., E. coli O157:H7, non-O157 Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC), and Listeria monocytogenes were detected and isolated from all samples. Risk quantification resulted in 43 (50.0%) high-risk, 34 (39.5%) moderate-risk, and nine (10.5%) low-risk butcher shops. Training sessions for 498 handlers and 4,506 consumers were held. Re-evaluation by risk quantification and microbiological analyses resulted in 19 (22.1%) high-risk, 42 (48.8%) moderate-risk and 25 (29.1%) low-risk butcher shops. The count of indicator microorganisms decreased with respect to the 2010–2011 period. After the implementation of improvement actions, the presence of L. monocytogenes, E. coli O157:H7 and stx genes in ground beef decreased. Salmonella spp. was isolated from 10 (11.6%) ground beef samples, without detecting statistically significant differences between both study periods (evaluation and verification). The percentage of pathogens in environmental samples was reduced in the verification period (Salmonella spp., 1.5%; L. monocytogenes, 10.7%; E. coli O157:H7, 0.6%; non-O157 STEC, 6.8%). Risk quantification was useful to identify those relevant facts in butcher shops. The reduction of contamination in ground beef and the environment was possible after training handlers based on the problems identified in their own butcher shops. Our results confirm the feasibility of implementing a comprehensive risk management program in butcher shops, and the importance of information campaigns targeting consumers. Further collaborative efforts would be necessary to improve foodstuffs safety at retail level and at home.

Isolation and characterization of non-O157 Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli from beef carcasses, cuts and trimmings of abattoirs in Argentina

“…In the US, non-O157 STEC prevalence was 9.4% in retail beef [ 43 ] and 6.6, 1.8, 4.6 and 20.3% in domestic and imported beef trimmings from New Zealand, Australia and Uruguay, respectively [ 44 ]. Our findings were similar to those reported by Bosilevac et al [ 44 ] in beef trimmings, and also agree with the previously reported low prevalence (0.6%) of top six STEC in Argentina identifying only one O26 STEC from retail raw ground beef [ 45 ].…”

“…Some of the serotypes found in this study (O8:H19, O91:H21, O113:H21, O130:H11, O174:H21 and O178:H19) have been previously isolated from cattle, food and the environment in Argentina [ 46 ]. O8:H19, O174:H21 and O178:H19 were the most frequently found; they were isolated from all types of sources and associated with at least one HUS case in Argentina [ 45 , 47 – 49 ]. However, none were associated with HUS during our study period according the Argentinean surveillance system [ 50 ].…”

“…coli O130:H11 and O178:H19 were the most prevalent serotypes isolated from dairy cows [ 51 ] and had been previously identified in beef abattoirs [ 15 ]. Most non-O157 STEC serotypes isolated from bovine carcasses and meat in the present work have already been described [ 45 , 52 – 55 ], except for O8:H7, O20:H7, O41:H7, O48:H7, O73:H[41, NM], O74:H42, O83:H25, O84:H7, O103:H[26, 42], O141:NM, O149:H[8, 16], O154:H19, O163:H[28, 46], O181:H14, O183:H18, O185:H[21, NM] and ONT:H[18, 41, 66]. Although their pathogenic potential on the basis of the non-O157 STEC serotypes isolated from HUS cases has been assessed, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) moved away from such classification due to the difficulty of predicting the emergence of novel pathogenic STEC types considering only the eae gene or a restricted panel of serogroups [ 7 ].…”

Characterization of Shiga‐toxin producing Escherichia coli isolated from meat products sold in San Luis, Argentina

“…Intervention strategies to avoid the contamination of meat products and consequently, to reduce the STEC incidence in humans, have been focused on live cattle on the farm, on slaughter plants, and on the final product at retail (Brashears & Chaves, ; Leotta et al, ). The National Service of Agrifood Health and Quality of Argentina (SENASA, for its Spanish acronym) applies intervention measures in order to reduce these bacteria on carcasses (SENASA, ).…”

Development and In-House Validation of a Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction for the Detection of Listeria monocytogenes in Meat

“…monocytogenes can multiply at refrigeration temperatures, form biofilms on different materials and under various conditions, and resist a range of environmental stresses (Law et al, 2015). Thus, the presence of this bacterium in retail shop environments is a risk due to the possibility of crosscontamination with food products (Leotta et al, 2016). We, therefore, conducted a field study to apply and validate the RT-PCR developed.…”