Isolation of Arcobacter butzleri in environmental and food samples collected in industrial and artisanal dairy plants

Abstract

This study investigated the presence of Arcobacter species in two cheese factories; a total of 22 environmental samples and 10 food samples were collected from an artisanal and an industrial cheese factory; Arcobacter species were isolated after enrichment, and isolates were identified at species level by multiplex-polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay. In the artisanal cheese factory, Arcobacter spp. were isolated from several environmental samples, cow and water buffalo raw milk and ricotta cheese. In the industrial plant, Arcobacter spp. were isolated from surfaces not in contact with food and from a cleaned surface in contact with food; no Arcobacter spp. was isolated from food. All isolates were identified as A. butzleri. We report of the presence of A. butzleri in a ready-to-eat cheese produced for retail. In addition, the isolation of A. butzleri in food processing surfaces in the two cheese factories could be assessed as a source of potential contamination for cheeses.

Arcobacter butzleri in Sheep Ricotta Cheese at Retail and Related Sources of Contamination in an Industrial Dairy Plant

“…This study showed the occurrence of A. butzleri in the surfaces of the investigated dairy plant, in agreement with previous reports (10)(11)(12) in which A. butzleri was isolated from surfaces in contact with food and from surfaces not in contact with food both in artisanal and in industrial dairy plants; the plant surfaces were more frequently contaminated than food samples (33.3% versus 21%).…”

“…other than A. butzleri was isolated in ricotta cheese and in the dairy plant; A. butzleri has been reported to be more resistant than other Arcobacter species in several substrates (8,26,32), and this may account for the more frequent isolation of A. butzleri both in milk and in dairy plants (10)(11)(12)(24)(25)(26). In addition, the isolation method used in this work may have affected the species of Arcobacter detected, as most of the isolation methods used are not optimal for all Arcobacter species (28).…”

“…In industrialized countries, the consumption and handling of raw or poorly cooked contaminated foods of animal origin have been implicated as important routes of Arcobacter transmission to humans (7), and the initial source seems to be fecal contamination during the various stages of production processes (8). However, Arcobacter contamination of food processing surfaces has been reported in poultry slaughterhouses, spinach processing plants, and dairy plants (9)(10)(11)(12)(13)(14)(15)(16)(17).…”

“…have been isolated in the dairy chain from fecal samples of dairy animals (18)(19)(20)(21)(22), from milk filters (23), and from raw milk (10,24,25). Recent investigations demonstrated the ability of A. butzleri and A. cryaerophilus to survive during the shelf life of dairy products (26,27), reporting isolation of A. butzleri in an artisanal ready-to-eat water buffalo ricotta cheese and in the environments of both artisanal and industrial dairy plants (10)(11)(12). In Italy, ricotta cheese is a widespread fresh or salted dairy product produced from whey resulting from the cheesemaking process, using milk of different animals.…”

Arcobacter butzleri, Arcobacter cryaerophilus, and Arcobacter skirrowii Circulation in a Dairy Farm and Sources of Milk Contamination

“…In the specific case of the dairy chain, Arcobacter spp. have been isolated from fecal samples of dairy animals (7)(8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13), in-line milk filters (14), cow and water buffalo milk (15)(16)(17)(18)(19), cheeses, and the cheese-processing environment (19)(20)(21)(22)(23)(24).…”