Research project
Survey of the microbiological contamination of cull ewes and prime lamb at slaughter in England and Wales
There has been no recent monitoring of microorganisms on sheep at slaughter in England and Wales, the last survey being 20 years ago. To address this evidence gap, the FSA has commissioned a survey to gather data on the prevalence and levels of pathogenic and commensal microorganisms contaminating lamb and sheep carcases as this will inform several areas of the FSA’s work.
Background
It has been nearly 20 years since the last sheep-based abattoir survey has been carried out in the England and Wales. Pathogenic organisms present on prime lamb and cull ewe carcases after slaughter can persist in the retail product and potentially lead to outbreaks. There is a need for more recent data on the prevalence and levels of pathogenic and commensal microorganisms contaminating the surface of lamb and sheep carcases as this will inform several areas of the FSA’s work. This includes reducing the uncertainties associated with our microbiological risk assessments which allow us to support changes to facilitate the supply of sheep meat and offal under atypical conditions. The survey will also inform future policy work by generating data on hygiene indicator organisms (e.g. Enterobacteriaceae and E. coli) found on sheep carcases.
Objective and approach
This is a voluntary survey and all abattoirs that slaughter sheep and lambs in England and Wales have been invited to participate. Samples will be taken by FSA operations teams within abattoirs aiming to collect 1380 carcase swab samples over a 12-month period. Samples will undergo detection and enumeration for Salmonella, Campylobacter, E. coli and Enterobacteriaceae by APHA Weybridge.
The main objective of the FSA part of survey is to gather scientific data that will help meet evidence gaps identified during recent risk assessments. It is designed to:
- Generate a baseline of prevalence and levels of indicator organisms (E. coli and Enterobacteriaceae) in prime lamb carcases to inform foreign market equivalence assessments.
- Gather data to enable the FSA to better assess the risk to the consumer of changes to official microbiological sampling requirements for slaughterhouses, for example based on throughput.
- Gather information on the prevalence and levels of Salmonella and Campylobacter detected on the carcase and in the caecum of culled ewes versus prime lamb.