Category Archives: Campylobacter

Research -Persistent contamination of Salmonella, Campylobacter, Escherichia coli, and Staphylococcus aureus at a broiler farm in New Zealand

Posted on February 18, 2020 | Leave a comment

Canadian Journal of Microbiology

Intensive poultry production due to public demand raises the risk of contamination, creating potential foodborne hazards to consumers. The prevalence and microbial load of the pathogens Campylobacter, Salmonella, Staphylococcus aureus, and Escherichia coli was determined by standard methods at the farm level. After disinfection, swab samples collected from wall crevices, drinkers, and vents were heavily contaminated, as accumulated organic matter and dust likely protected the pathogens from the disinfectants used. The annex floor also showed high microbial concentrations, suggesting the introduction of pathogens from external environments, highlighting the importance of erecting hygiene barriers at the entrance of the main shed. Therefore, pathogen control measures and proper application of disinfectants are recommended as intervention strategies. Additionally, quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) was evaluated as a quantification tool. qPCR showed limitations with samples containing low microbial counts because of the low detection limit of the method. Thus, bacterial pre-enrichment of test samples may be necessary to improve the detection of pathogens by qPCR.

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Posted in Campylobacter, E.coli, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, microbial contamination, Microbiology, Research, Salmonella, Staphylococcus aureus, Uncategorized

Scotland – Annual surveillance reports – Salmonella and Campylobacter

Posted on February 12, 2020 | Leave a comment

HPS

Article: 54/601

The annual surveillance reports for laboratory confirmed cases of Salmonella and Campylobacter in Scotland in 2019 are now available on the Health Protection Scotland (HPS) website.

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Posted in Campylobacter, food contamination, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Pathogen, Food Safety, Food Testing, Research, Salmonella, Uncategorized

Research – Scientists say raw milk testing in England ineffective

Posted on February 7, 2020 | Leave a comment

Food Safety News

The current testing regime in England for unpasteurized milk is not fit for purpose, according to researchers describing a 2016 Campylobacter outbreak that sickened 69 people.

They say there was a need for regular microbiological monitoring to detect contamination with pathogens and recommended reviewing the legal testing criteria to include pathogen assessment, to ensure future outbreaks are prevented.

In December 2016, Public Health England investigated an outbreak of campylobacteriosis in North West England, with 69 infections during an 11-week period, according to the study published in the journal Epidemiology and Infection.

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Posted in Campylobacter, food contamination, Food Hygiene, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Pathogen, Food Safety, Uncategorized

Research – Not-so-dirty birds? Not enough evidence to link wild birds to food-borne illness

Posted on February 4, 2020 | Leave a comment

Science Daily

When food makes people sick, some blame birds because they hang around farms, and their feces can contain E. coli, Salmonella and Campylobacter, three common pathogens that can cause food-borne illness.

But a recent Washington State University study published in Biological Reviews on Jan. 31 has found scant evidence to support the link between wild birds and human illness involving those three pathogens.

The perceived risk of wild birds can impact their survival, said Olivia Smith, lead author on the study and a recent WSU Ph.D. graduate.

“Farmers are being encouraged to remove wild bird habitat to make their food safer, but it doesn’t appear that these actions are based on data,” Smith said. “When you restrict birds from agricultural settings, you are doing something that can lead to their decline.”

Bird populations have been falling rapidly in recent decades. Scientists estimate that since 1970, North America has lost more than three billion birds. In light of this, the WSU researchers highlighted the need for more definitive research before destroying habitat and banning birds from fields in the name of food safety.

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Posted in Campylobacter, E.coli, food contamination, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Research, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Safety, Food Testing, Research, Uncategorized

Research – Occurrence and characterisation of biofilms in drinking water systems of broiler houses

Posted on February 3, 2020 | Leave a comment

NCBI

Abstract

Background

Water quality in the drinking water system (DWS) plays an important role in the general health and performance of broiler chickens. Conditions in the DWS of broilers are ideal for microbial biofilm formation. Since pathogens might reside within these biofilms, they serve as potential source of waterborne transmission of pathogens to livestock and humans. Knowledge about the presence, importance and composition of biofilms in the DWS of broilers is largely missing. In this study, we therefore aim to monitor the occurrence, and chemically and microbiologically characterise biofilms in the DWS of five broiler farms.

Results

The bacterial load after disinfection in DWSs was assessed by sampling with a flocked swab followed by enumerations of total aerobic flora (TAC) and Pseudomonas spp. The dominant flora was identified and their biofilm-forming capacity was evaluated. Also, proteins, carbohydrates and uronic acids were quantified to analyse the presence of extracellular polymeric substances of biofilms. Despite disinfection of the water and the DWS, average TAC was 6.03 ± 1.53 log CFU/20cm2. Enumerations for Pseudomonas spp. were on average 0.88 log CFU/20cm2 lower. The most identified dominant species from TAC were Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, Pseudomonas geniculata and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. However at species level, most of the identified microorganisms were farm specific. Almost all the isolates belonging to the three most abundant species were strong biofilm producers. Overall, 92% of all tested microorganisms were able to form biofilm under lab conditions. Furthermore, 63% of the DWS surfaces appeared to be contaminated with microorganisms combined with at least one of the analysed chemical components, which is indicative for the presence of biofilm.

Conclusions

Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, Pseudomonas geniculata and Pseudomonas aeruginosa are considered as opportunistic pathogens and could consequently be a potential risk for animal health. Additionally, the biofilm-forming capacity of these organisms could promote attachment of other pathogens such as Campylobacter spp. and Salmonella spp.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (10.1186/s12866-019-1451-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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Posted in Biofilm, Campylobacter, Food Microbiology Research, Pseudomonas, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Research, Salmonella, Uncategorized

RASFF Alert – Campylobacter – Chicken Meat

Posted on January 31, 2020 | Leave a comment

RASFF-Logo

RASFF – Salmonella enterica ser. Infantis (presence /25g) and Campylobacter jejuni (presence /25g) in frozen chicken meat from Poland in Finland

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Posted in Campylobacter, food contamination, Food Hygiene, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Pathogen, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, RASFF, Uncategorized

Denmark – Campylobacter outbreak from chicken continues in Denmark

Posted on January 16, 2020 | Leave a comment

Food Safety News 

Almost 90 people are part of an outbreak in Denmark from Campylobacter after eating chicken meat from one slaughterhouse.

Statens Serum Institut (SSI), the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration (Fødevarestyrelsen) and DTU Food – National Food Institute investigated the Campylobacter jejuni outbreak.

As part of a project this past year involving the Clinical Microbiology Department (KMA) in Aalborg, Danish Veterinary and Food Administration and SSI; Campylobacter isolates from patients diagnosed in Aalborg beginning in March 2019 were collected, sent to SSI and whole genome sequenced.

Between February 2019 and Jan. 9, 2020, 88 patients with the same type of Campylobacter have been identified. Among the sick were 35 women and 53 men aged 2 to 91 years old. The outbreak appears to be declining with fewer infections toward the end of 2019.

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Posted in Campylobacter, food bourne outbreak, food contamination, Food Hygiene, Food Illness, Food Inspections, Food Micro Blog, Food Microbiology, Food Microbiology Blog, Food Microbiology Testing, Food Pathogen, food recall, Food Safety, Food Safety Alert, Food Testing, foodborne outbreak, foodbourne outbreak, outbreak, Uncategorized