FOOD SAFETY
& Meat Industry Media
Before reaching our plates, food is processed, transported and distributed. During
the course of this journey, foods can become contaminated if all parameters are not
carefully controlled. The presence of pathogens in the food supply is undesirable
and is considered a major cause of gastrointestinal disease world-wide.
Most food-related illness outbreaks are caused by
bacteria, viruses and parasites. Food should be a
source of nourishment, not an opportunity for
potential exposure to bacteria that can make you sick.
In the United States alone, foodborne infections
cause an estimated 76 million cases of illness and
325.000 hospitalizations annually— more than 1 in
1.000 people are hospitalized each year. Five
pathogens account for much of the most severe
illness: Salmonella, Escherichia coli Escherichia coli
O157 and other Shigatoxin-producing E. coli,
Campylobacter, Listeria, and Toxoplasma. Together
these cause an estimated 3.5 million infections,
33.000 hospitalizations, and 1.600 deaths every year.
C/ La Forja, 9
28850 - Torrejón de Ardoz, Madrid - ESPAÑA
Food safety breakdowns have resulted in hundreds of
product recalls, thousands of illnesses and widespread
media attention; making it an important focus of
consumer concerns, policy responses and strategy
industries initiatives in many countries. ISO 22000 is a
standard developed by the International Organization
for Standardization dealing with food safety which
specifies the requirements for a food safety
management system that involves interactive
communication, system management, prerequisite
programs and HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical
Control Points) guidelines.
There are many opportunities to prevent
contamination, such as slower line speeds in slaughter
Tel. +34 91 761 02 00
Fax +34 91 656 82 28
plants, stronger government inspection authorities
and more careful work to ensure that feces and other
types of contamination do not come into contact
with products in the first place, instead of simply
focusing on disinfecting or rinsing contaminants.
government
regulations
Strengthening
and
enforcement of corporate food producers,
as well as breaking their stranglehold on the food
system, are key steps to improving food safety.
MEAT INDUSTRY
Meat and meat products provide a concentrated
source of protein of high biological value and
contribute significantly to our diet. However, they
are also highly perishable commodities which,
unless correctly stored, processed, packaged and
distributed rapidly, spoil and may even allow the
growth of food-borne pathogenic microorganisms
if no suitable preservative measures are taken. The
businesses dealing with these products have a
responsibility to ensure that the end product is
safe and suitable for consumption.
All raw meat can have some level of microbial
contamination present and we cannot expect
otherwise without further processing. However, only
when spoilage microorganisms such as Brochothrix
thermosphacta, Pseudomonas spp, and lactic acid
bacteria are allowed to grow in high numbers, the
meat becomes spoiled and unfit for human
consumption. Depending on the species and
whether they are present, pathogens such as Listeria
monocytogenes, Salmonella spp., and E. coli 0157:H7
may grow and cause illness through the ingestion of
the bacterial cells themselves or from toxins that
they produce.
In every country the meat industry has received
particular attention from food safety and quality
assurance (QA) initiatives. Vertical industry alliances
are becoming an important means of assuring food
safety.
CONDA is aware of the importance of being able
to rely on the quality and safety of the products
we consume. For this reason, among CONDA’s
product range you can find many culture media
for specific use within the meat industry.
www.condalab.com
C/ La Forja, 9
.
Recently we have developed two media for
enumeration and cultivation of heterofermentative
lactic acid bacteria (LAB), including Lactobacilli,
Leuconostocs and lactic acid streptococci in
meat: Cat. 2049 APT AGAR and Cat.2067 APT
BROTH.
Lactobacillus constitutes a large part of the lactic
acid bacteria group, abundant in nature. They
convert lactose and other sugars to lactic acid and
are therefore named Lactobacillus. Under certain
conditions, e.g. in packaged refrigerated meats or
raw sausage meats, they are able to compete
efficiently with accompanying microorganisms for
nutrients and may reach substantial viable counts.
Homofermentative LAB almost exclusively produce
lactic acid from fermentable carbohydrates present
in meats, which is relatively mild and palatable.
However, heterofermentative lactic acid bacteria
produce significant amounts of non-desirable
fermentation end products, such as CO2 gas,
ethanol, acetic acid, butanoic acid and acetoin
which may affect flavor.
Meat fermentation involving beneficial LAB has
become an important and sustainable preservation
technology, and today a number of suitable species
and strains are successfully applied as starter and
protective cultures in various fermented meats all
over the world. These cultures not only prevent the
growth of common food pathogens but also of
undesirable food spoilage bacteria, including
heterofermentative LAB.
More information:
http://www.condalab.com/industries/
BIBLIOGRAPHY
LotharKrökel. The Role of Lactic Acid Bacteria in safety and Flavour
Development in Safety and Flavour Development of Meat and Meat
Products. http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/51117
J.B. Evans and C.F. Niven, Nutrition of the heterofermentative Lactobacilli
that cause greening of cured meatproducts, J. Bact., 62, 599 (1951)
Jill E. Hobbs, Andrew Fearne, John Spiggs. Incentive structures for food
safety and quality assurance: an international comparison. Department
of Agricultural Economics, University of Saskatchewan, 51 Campus
Drive, Saskatoon, Canada. November 2001
Egan AF (1983) Lactic Acid Bacteria of Meat and Meat
Products.Antonie van Leeuwenhoek 49: 327-336.
Mead PS, Slutsker L, Dietz V, McCaig LF, Bresee JS, Shapiro C, et al.
Food-related illness and death in the United States. EmergInfect Dis
1999;5:607-25
Jonh M. Antle. Benefits and costs of food safety regulation. Department
of Agricultural Economics and Economics, Montana State University,
Bozeman, MT 59717-0292 USA
tech.export@condalab.com
28850 - Torrejón de Ardoz, Madrid - ESPAÑA
Tel. +34 91 761 02 00
Fax +34 91 656 82 28