Meat safety: an innovative modelling approach to evaluate microbial pathogen transfer and cross contamination, from farm to fork (Meat-Cross-Con)

• Grant number: 12/50535-5
• Support type: Regular Research Grants
• Duration: April 01, 2013 - March 31, 2017
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Food Science and Technology
• Cooperation agreement: Innovation Fund Denmark
• Principal researcher: Bernadette Dora Gombossy de Melo Franco
• Grantee: Bernadette Dora Gombossy de Melo Franco
• Principal researcher abroad: Soren Aabo
• Institution abroad: Technical University of Denmark (DTU), Denmark
• Home Institution: Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas (FCF). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes are foodborne pathogens that represent great concerns for consumers, food industries, and public health authorities. Epidemiological investigations of foodborne disease outbreaks have indicated that cross-contamination is the major cause of contamination of foods of animal origin during slaughtering, processing and post-processing by these pathogens. Despite this, there is a gap of knowledge on how cross-contamination occurs and its impacts on the microbial risk involving Salmonella and L. monocytogenes and meatlmeat products. The current research project aims at studying the transference of Salmonella and L. monocytogenes in the meat production chain, from farm to fork, and the changes in the microbial populations in the carcasses and meat in the different processing steps using a 16S-RNA pyrosequencing approach and innovative modelling tools. The activities foreseen for this project were divided into four work packages: i) Microbiota analysis by DNA sequencing and real-time PCR, ii) Cross-contamination by Salmonella during pig slaughter; iii) Cross-contamination by L. monocytogenes during processing of ready-to-eat beef products; and iv) Developing of cross-contamination models and quantifying consumer risk. This project was developed based on the industries', food scientists' and governments' expectations to have reliable tools to model and analyze cross-contamination in specific steps of slaughtering and processing of meat products. The results of this research project will allow industries and retail to establish adequate own control systems and c1eaning regimes and to set specific performance standards for process equipment for the benefit of consumer safety and meat product quality. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

MOLLER, C. O. A.; SANT'ANA, A. S.; HANSEN, S. K. H.; NAUTA, M. J.; SILVA, L. P.; ALVARENGA, V. O.; MAFFEI, D.; SILVA, F. F. P.; LOPES, J. T.; FRANCO, B. D. G. M.; AABO, S.; HANSEN, T. B. Evaluation of a cross contamination model describing transfer of Salmonella spp. and Listeria monocytogenes during grinding of pork and beef. International Journal of Food Microbiology, v. 226, p. 42-52, JUN 2 2016. Web of Science Citations: 4.