Findings of the National Pork Board Salmonella Intervention Assistance Program for Small & Very Small Plants

Transcription

1 Fndngs of the Natonal Pork Board Salmonella Interventon Assstance Program for Small & Very Small Plants Orgnally publshed as a Natonal Pork Board/ Amercan Meat Scence Assocaton Fact Sheet. Introducton Authors Wllam Benjy Mkel, Unversty of Kentucky Penn Whte, Kansas State Unversty Mchele Senne, Seaboard Farms Revewer Margaret Hardn, Sara Lee Corporaton The Natonal Pork Board began the Salmonella Assstance Interventon Program (SAIP) n Ths program targeted prmarly small and very small meat packers who were havng dffculty meetng the requrements of the Unted States Department of Agrculture s Food Safety and Inspecton Servce (USDA- FSIS) Salmonella standards. The FSIS set Salmonella performance standards to verfy whether SSOP/ HACCP systems are effectve n controllng contamnaton wth harmful bactera. Accordng to USDA, Salmonella was selected because; (1) t s the most common bacteral cause of foodborne llness; (2) FSIS baselne data shows that t colonzes a varety of mammals and brds and occurs at a frequency whch permts changes to be detected; (3) current methodologes can recover Salmonella from a varety of meat and poultry products; and (4) nterventon strateges amed at reducng fecal contamnaton and other sources of Salmonella on raw products should be effectve aganst other pathogens. Detaled gudelnes related to the USDA-FSIS response to Salmonella Performance Standards falures by plants may be found at the followng web ste: The pathogen reducton performance standards are based on the prevalence of Salmonella as determned from FSIS natonwde mcrobal baselne surveys. The standards are based on prevalence of the organsm and expressed n terms of the maxmum number of postve samples that are allowed per sample set (sample sets are statstcally determned wth swne requrng 55 samples wth a maxmum of 6 postves). Baselne samples collected n large plants, showed Salmonella prevalence n swne was 8.7% pror to HAC- CP mplementaton (Table 1). After HACCP mplementaton n large plants, Salmonella prevalence n swne decreased to 1.6% n In small swne plants, 18.0% tested postve after HACCP mplementaton durng 1999, compared to the performance standard of 8.7%. Therefore, whle 100% of large plants met the performance standards, only 50% of small plants acheved successful performance (Table 2). In 2000, large plants had 4.1% postves (93.8%), small plants had 7.7% postves (70.6%) and very small plants had 7.2% postves. In the prevous progress report coverng the three years of , the agency ponted out that small market hog establshments were havng the most dffculty meetng an exstng performance standard. However, the progress report noted that Salmonella prevalence n code A market hog carcass samples from small establshments had decreased from 18.0% n Calendar Year (CY) 1999 to 7.7% n CY 2000, compared to the 8.7% baselne prevalence. For CY 2001, the Salmonella prevalence n market hog carcasses from small establshments contnued to decrease to 3.5% (well below the baselne prevalence). In 2001, the Salmonella prevalence for very small market hog establshments was nearly as low, 4.4% as compared wth 7.2% n CY PAGE 1

2 Ths baselne data from USDA ndcates that smaller pork slaughter plants were more prone to have hgher ncdences of Salmonella spp. than larger plants. It has been theorzed that smaller plants were at a dsadvantage for several reasons. Frst, smaller plants lacked the manpower to physcally address possble control ponts as well as larger plants wth greater manpower. Second, many smaller plants, agan due to economc reasons, may not have n ther employment recent college graduates who are traned n greater depth related to food safety ssues and nterventon methods. Fnally, most nterventon methods have targeted larger operatons and n many cases were beyond the economc scope of many smaller processors. Thus was born the SAIP as a method of assstng small and very small plants wth both techncal assstance and novel nterventon methods, that were wthn ther fnancal reach. The NPB staff n conjuncton wth varous unversty personnel formed the SAIP Team and began respondng to requests from pork processors who were concerned about ther ablty to meet the USDA-FSIS Salmonella Performance Standards. The SAIP Team prmarly responded to plants that had already faled ether ther frst or second samplng set collected by USDA. The objectve of the team was to evaluate the entre operaton, from recevng through shppng, and determne possble scenaros whch mght mprove the operaton, thus decreasng the chance of another Salmonella samplng set falure. The team arrved pror to Santaton Standard Operatng Procedures (SSOP) pre-op and collected bo-lumnance swabs, to ndcate the level of cleanng effectveness after pre-op but pror to operaton. In addton, the team observed all portons of the operaton for an extended tme perod to ascertan the standard operatng procedures of the plant employees. The followng s a summarzaton of specfc ssues, whch tended to be recurrng at many of the plants evaluated. In some cases, regardless of plant sze, the ssue related to lack of employee tranng. Although not comprehensve, ths lst ncludes many potental ptfalls that should be closely scrutnzed by both large and small plants alke. Pre-Harvest Transportaton - Length of tme durng transport and envronmental condtons were determned to have possble effects on fecal sheddng of Salmonella due to anmal stress. Recommendatons were made to mnmze lengthy haulng condtons. If haulng tmes could not be reduced, t was suggested that establshments nsttute adequate holdng tmes pror to harvest (mnmum of 4 hours). Unloadng and Handlng - Employee handlng of swne-enterng facltes was evaluated as another area needng mproved attenton. The movement of swne wth mnmal stress nto holdng pens was encouraged. In addton, stuatons where swne were subjected to ncreased stress due to abnormal confnement (anmals beng held n crowded alley ways durng employee breaks) were encouraged to be rectfed. Faclty Constructon - It was recommended that all unloadng and holdng facltes be constructed of materals (manly concrete) to facltate adequate cleanng and to optmze anmal cleanlness comng nto the faclty. Pre-Harvest Feedng - It was recommended that feed be wthheld from anmals a mnmum of 6-8 hours pror to harvest n an effort to mnmze possble ntestnal puncture and leakage of ngesta durng the evsceraton process. Anmal Condton and Health - It was noted that n many operatons, slower growng, tal-enders were harvested as specalty market tems to meet the market demand for roasters. The health and physcal condton of these anmals potentally ncreased bacteral contamnaton throughout processng. Pre-Harvest Interventon Method - In many cases, t was noted that ncomng Loadng Transportaton Handlng Recevng Holdng Stunnng Stckng Scaldng Deharng Bungng Evsceratng Carcass Splttng Trmmng Interventon Acton Fnal Wash Chllng Fabrcaton Fgure 1. Swne Harvest Flow Dagram PAGE

3 anmals were very contamnated wth feces and mud. An nterventon wash consstng of water and/or 200ppm of chlorne was recommended to decrease the potental of cross contamnaton. Processng Year Plant Envronment - Many tems were noted durng the pre-operatonal audt that related to plant desgn and operaton. Ventlaton from outdoors onto the slaughter floor was noted as havng a possble detrmental effect, especally when ncomng arflow was located next to the holdng facltes. In addton, the constructon of many plants was such that t was dffcult to contnually mantan a santary envronment. Furthermore, t was noted that many plants had an employee traffc flow problem from the harvest area nto other further processng areas of the plant. Throughout the processng area n many plants the followng defcts were noted: Employee use of cotton gloves spreadng contamnaton from one carcass to another Lack of suffcent work space between employees to allow for mproved attenton to detal Rapd lne speeds whch mnmzed the ablty of employees to adequately santze equpment between carcasses Lack of approprate santzers dstrbuted strategcally throughout the harvest floor for employee utlzaton Lack of employee tranng programs to emphasze ther role n food safety Inadequate cooler spacng of carcasses to mnmze contamnaton from one carcass to another Lack of multple antmcrobal nterventon methods to adequately address potental contamnaton Recommendatons Baselne Prevalence (%) Large Establshments Small Establshments Very Small Establshments All Szes Establshments # Samp % Pos # Samp % Pos # Samp % Pos # Samp % Pos , % 1, % 5, % 8, % , % 2, % 1, % 5, % % % 0 0 1, % , % , % , % 4, % 6, % 16, % Year Large Establshments Table 1. USDA Salmonella Performance Data for Market Hogs Small Establshments Very Small Establshments # Sets % Pass # Sets % Pass # Sets % Pass # Sets % Pass % % % % % % % % % % % % All Szes Establshments % % % % Table 2. Percent of Sample Sets meetng the Salmonella Performance Standards for Market Hogs by Calendar Year, The followng recommendatons were made to many plants n efforts to reduce ther potental for Salmonella contamnaton. Implement an ndependent testng program to be carred out n conjuncton wth that of USDA. Ths testng should evaluate each swab samplng area ndependently n an attempt to dentfy possble areas of ncreased contamnaton. Implement an employee tranng program amed at educatng employees of ther role n producng a safe product and the reasons behnd the operaton s standard operatng procedure. Increase the avalablty of approprate santzers for employees n the harvest area both for equpment and hands/gloves. Possble santzers ncluded hot water, water sterlzers, and chlorne dps (up to 200ppm for knves and saws). Mnmze the tme from stunnng to cooler to no more than 30 mnutes to reduce carcass temperature as quckly as possble. Implement multple carcass antmcrobal nterventon methods to reduce mcrobal populatons pror to the carcasses enterng the cooler. These should nclude at least two methods PAGE 3

4 Summary and may range from a hot water wash (>140 F), a chlorne (50ppm) and/or organc acd (2%) spray, or re-sngeng (10 seconds) of the carcass. Recent data from the Unversty of Kentucky has demonstrated that each of these methods, especally when used n a multple nterventon system has the ablty to enhance mcrobal decontamnaton. Increase carcass spacng wthn the cooler and decrease cooler temperature. Increase arflow to enhance proper chllng of the carcass wthn 24 hours. Implement an antmcrobal nterventon method durng chllng (chlorne spray) to further reduce mcrobal contamnaton. Increase attenton to all aspects of Santaton Standard Operatng Procedures (SSOPs) to reduce the possblty of mcrobal contamnaton from poorly cleaned equpment and plant envronments. Work closely wth the USDA nspector to dentfy any possble modes of contamnaton, whch may have been nadvertently overlooked. Although no one problem at any of the plants vsts tended to be the sole ssue related to possble Salmonella contamnaton, many small yet sgnfcant tems were dentfed as havng potental negatve affects as a mcrobal source. The fndngs from ths program re-enforce the standard, long-lastng phlosophy that Cleanlness s next to Godlness. Bascally, n order to produce a hgh qualty, santary product, t s mportant to mantan a santary faclty and to have outstandng personal hygene n addton to utlzng all possble technologcal advancements avalable. Plants that employ these tactcs wll succeed n ther quest to produce a safe and wholesome product demanded by today s consumers. Reference to products n ths publcaton s not ntended to be an endorsement to the excluson of others whch may be smlar. Persons usng such products assume responsblty for ther use n accordance wth current drectons of the manufacturer. The nformaton represented heren s beleved to be accurate but s n no way guaranteed. The authors, revewers, and publshers assume no lablty n connecton wth any use for the products dscussed and make no warranty, expressed or mpled, n that respect, nor can t be assumed that all safety measures are ndcated heren or that addtonal measures may be requred. The user therefore, must assume full responsblty, both as to persons and as to property, for the use of these materals ncludng any whch mght be covered by patent. Ths materal may be avalable n alternatve formats. PAGE

5 Informaton developed for the Pork Informaton Gateway, a project of the U.S. Pork Center of Excellence supported fully by USDA/Agrcultural Research Servce, USDA/Cooperatve State Research, Educaton, and Extenson Servce, Pork Checkoff, NPPC, state pork assocatons from Iowa, Kentucky, Mssour, Msssspp, Tennessee, Pennsylvana, and Utah, and the Extenson Servces from several cooperatng Land-Grant Insttutons ncludng Iowa State Unversty, North Carolna State Unversty, Unversty of Mnnesota, Unversty of Illnos, Unversty of Mssour, Unversty of Nebraska, Purdue Unversty, The Oho State Unversty, South Dakota State Unversty, Kansas State Unversty, Mchgan State Unversty, Unversty of Wsconsn, Texas A & M Unversty, Vrgna Tech Unversty, Unversty of Tennessee, North Dakota State Unversty, Unversty of Georga, Unversty of Arkansas, and Colorado State Unversty. U.S. Pork Center of Excellence 2006