PERFORMANCE-CHARACTERISTICS OF 3 DIFFERENT PREEVISCERATION WASH REGIMES APPLIED TO THE FOREQUARTERS OF OVINE CARCASSES IN AN INVERTED DRESSING SYSTEM

The Performance of three pre-evisceration wash regimes applied to the forequarters of ovine carcasses in an inverted dressing system was assessed, Washing regimes consisted of a high-pressure jet wash, a low-pressure sluice wash, and both washes applied in series. Visible contamination incidences prior to the wash were between 64 and 71% at the carcass level, wool was the predominant contaminant, while faecal material and ingesta were rare All wash regimes reduced the incidence of carcass contamination by 62.8 to 70.5%, primarily through the removal of wool. A secondary effect was the redistribution of some wool from other areas of the forequarter to the inside leg. The sluice wash was superior to the jet wash in removing visible contamination. Bacterial numbers ranged from 3.64 to 4.03 log10CFU/cm2 prior to washing and were reduced to between 3.24 and 3.75 log10CFU/cm2 immediately after the pre-evisceration wash; the three wash regimes performed in an equivalent, but commercially non-significant manner. Further reductions of between 0.20 and 0.58 log10CFU/cm2 were effected by post-dressing events, including 12 h chilling. The low-pressure wash performance was considered superior to that of the jet wash, and no further improvement in carcass quality was demonstrated by the use of both washes in series.