Carcass decontamination

In carcass decontamination dilute solutions of organic acids (1-3%) normally do not have any effect on the sensory properties of meat. However, it is known that lactic and acetic acid can produce unfavorable sensory changes if applied directly to meat cuts, which may be irreversible. Salts of organic acids are approved for use as food ingredients such as emulsifiers, color and flavor enhancers, and humectants. They are also used to enhance the quality of cooked or cured meat products and to control the pH (Smulders and Greer, 1998). Sodium lactate is approved for use as (1) a flavor enhancer, (2) humectant, and (3) pH control agent (Lemay et al., 2002). 

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Siragusa, G. 1995. The effectiveness of carcass decontamination systems for controlling the presence of pathogens on the surfaces of meat animal carcasses. Journal of Food Safety 15 229-238. 

Safety concerns have intensified with regard to the potential implications of pathogen behavior and the microbial ecology of carcass decontamination with organic acid spray washes of meat. On beef decontaminated with lactic acid increases of nearly 3 logs within five days of storage at 10°C under air or vacuum have been recorded, whereas increases were only 1 log and virtually nonexistent on untreated beef. Meat-packing... 

Different organic acids, primarily lactic acid, have been successfully used for decontamination of whole livestock carcasses, and the application of different organic acids used for decontamination has also been tested in the fruit and vegetable industry. Organic acids other than lactic acid that are known to have bactericidal effects are acetic, benzoic, citric, malic, propanoic, sorbic, succinic and tartaric acids (Betts and Everis 2005). The antimicrobial action is due to a reduction in the pH in the bacterial environment, disruption of membrane transport, anion accumulation or a reduction in the internal pH in the cell (Busta et al., 2001). Many fruits contain naturally occurring organic acids. Nevertheless, some strains, for example E. coli 0157, are adapted to an acidic environment. Its survival, in combination with its low infective dose, makes it a health hazard for humans. 

Decontamination/Collection. Research operations should be analyzed to determine the types of waste, quantities of carcinogenic material, and handling procedures to be employed. All chemical carcinogens, including those contained in animal carcasses, should be deactivated, degraded if feasible, or packaged... 

Berry, E.D. and Cutter, C.N. 2000. Effects of acid adaptation of Escherichia coli 0157 H7 on efficacy of acetic acid spray washes to decontaminate beef carcass tissue. Applied and Environmental Microbiology 66 1493-1498. 

In Table 3.1 some factors are stipulated that should be considered in the decontamination of meat (European Union, 1996). Spraying with 1.5-2.5% organic acids such as acetic or lactic acid is effectively applied on red meat carcasses (Canadian Food Inspection Agency, 2004). Lactic and acetic acid solutions are commonly used by the red meat slaughtering industry as an antimicrobial spray wash on freshly slaughtered beef carcasses. These spray washes are used in the early steps of beef carcass processing, usually applied to carcasses after hide removal, before and after evisceration, but before chilling (Berry and Cutter, 2000). 

Source Data from European Union, Report of the Scientific Veterinary Committee (Public Health Section) on the Decontamination of Poultry Carcasses. VI/7785/96 Final. 1996. 

In decontamination of red meat carcasses the use of 1.5-25% of the following organic acids is permitted Acetic acid Lactic acid Citric acid Application/description... 

Feed with formic and propionic acids has been found to reduce Salmonella colonization in broilers (Thomson and Hinton, 1997), whereas decontamination of chicken carcasses with acetic or lactic acid reduced Campylobacter on carcasses or meat (Van Netten et al., 1994 Chaveerach et al., 2002). Organic acids, when added to feeds, should be protected to avoid dissociation in the crop and in the intestine that are known to possess higher pH and to reach far into the GIT, where the targeted bacterial population is situated (Gauthier, 2005). 

Treated carcasses are known to possess pH values ranging from 3.3-5.8 (Kanellos and Burriel, 2005 Mehyar et al., 2005 Del Rfo et al., 2007). The pH may be influenced by different factors, such as (1) the type of organic acid, (2) treatment time, (3) organic acid concentration, and (4) combinations with other decontamination techniques (Del Rfo et al., 2007 Alvarez-Ordonez et al., 2009). 

Castillo, A., Lucia, L.M., Goodson, K.J., Saveli, J.W., and Acuff, G.R. 1999. Decontamination of beef carcass tissue by steam vacuuming alone and combined with hot water and lactic acid sprays. Journal of Food Protection 62 146-151. 

Gill, C.O. and Bryant, J. 1997. Decontamination of carcasses by vacuum-hot water cleaning and steam pasteurization during routine operations at a beef packing plant. Meat Science 47 267-276. 

Kocevar, S.L., Sofos, J.N., Bolin, R.B., O Reagan, J.O., and Smith, G.C. 1997. Steam vacuuming as a pre-evisceration intervention to decontaminate beef carcasses. ]oumal of Food Protection 60 107-113. 

An important control strategy in the combat against extreme acid-tolerant food pathogens such as E. coli 0157 H7 is found in decontamination of meat carcasses. The ideal may be to control the extent of exposure of E. coli 0157 H7 to acid during meat processing and to increase the use of nonacid interventions such as hot water spraying and steam pasteurization, and would be a logical approach to sensitize E. coli 0157 H7 to acid in the absence of acid stress in food environments. Enhanced meat safety may be promoted by more intense use of water-based decontamination... 

Lactic and acetic acids are used in the beef industry for the decontamination of carcasses. The effectiveness of these acids is dependent on the concentration and temperature of the acid solution, the exposure time and application pressure, the application stage in the slaughtering process, the tissue type, the type of microorganisms, and the level of initial concentration [37], Therefore, a higher lactic and/or acetic acid concentration might be expected in meats treated with these acids. 

All wastes from the animal room are to be appropriately decontaminated, preferably by autoclaving, before disposal. Infected animal carcasses are to be incinerated after being transported from the animal room in leakproof, covered containers. 

Cutter CN, Siragusa CR. Decontamination of beef carcass tissue with nisin using a pilot-scale model carcass washer. Food Microbiol 1994 11 481-489. 

Dickson, J. S., Anderson, M. E. (1992). Microbiological decontamination of food animal carcasses by washing and sanitizing systems a review. Journal offood protection, v. 55(2) p. 

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