Tracing of Salmonella spp. in two pork slaughter and cutting plants using serotyping and macrorestriction genotyping

Aims: The origin of Salmonella contamination of pork, products is not well established. In order to further this knowledge, the transmission of Salmonella spp. from live pigs to pork cuts was investigated in two pork slaughter and cutting plants. Methods and Results: Salmonella spp. were isolated from both pork (pigs, carcasses, cuts) and the environment before and during slaughterhouse activities. Eight serotypes were identified. XbaI and SpeI macrorestriction distinguished 20 genotypes of Salmonella Typhimurium and 16 genotypes of Salmonella Derby. A major cluster of Salmonella Typhimurium genotypes was common to both plants and all pig-related genotypes, while a predominant pig-related Salmonella Derby genotype was common to both plants. Conclusions: None of the Salmonella strains persisted for long periods in the pork-processing environments. Significance and Impact of the Study: This work shows that contaminated live pigs, because of bacterial spread due to the process and ineffective cleaning procedures, are involved in Salmonella contamination.