Evaluation et gestion du risque associe a la presence de Salmonella spp. chez le porc a l'abattoir

Pork meat contamination by foodborne pathogens occurs most often during the slaughter process. In order to refine microbial risk assessment related to Salmonella spp. on pork carcasses during swine processing, it is necessary to use and apply the acknowledged principles in risk assessment in the Quebec situation. The general objectives of this study were based on microbial hazard characterization, exposure assessment and risk management.;Several possible sources of microbial contamination at pork slaughterhouses were analyzed to assess selected points where cross-contamination regarding Salmonella spp. and pork meat could occur. Healthy pig carriers of Salmonella spp., slaughterhouse environment, critical steps during the slaughter process (e.g. evisceration procedures and the stick wound removal) and the chilled carcasses were the target points in this study. Salmonella spp. was detected in 4.0% of the environmental samples. Among the contaminated environmental samples: gloves, aprons and working surfaces were the ones most frequently contaminated by Salmonella spp. The prevalence of Salmonella spp. positive chilled pork carcasses was 6.6%. It was also observed that Typhimurium and Derby serovars were ranked among the most frequent serovars recovered from feces, environment or carcasses. Healthy carriers and the removal of the intestinal tract, during evisceration procedures, have been considered to be significant critical control points as a source of pork carcass cross-contamination by pathogenic bacteria.;As a result, some management measures such as trimming or hot water wash (55°C) of pork carcasses for reducing the bacterial level contamination have been assessed in slaughterhouse environments. In this study, no significant difference has been observed in the reduction of total aerobic bacterial load, total coliforms and Escherichia coli counts on the contaminated pork carcasses analyzed.;Based on the non negligible risk associated with Salmonella spp. in pork at slaughterhouse and the potential introduction of multiresistant strains in human, further research is warranted in order to ensure effective foodborne pathogens contamination management in pig carcasses at slaughterhouses.;Salmonella spp. was found in, respectively, 2.8%, 15.9% and 13.4% of diarrheic patients (n = 1754), swine ( n = 2298) and broiler chickens (n = 2175) total samples. Phenotypic and genotypic characterization of Salmonella spp. strains demonstrated genetic relationships between multiresistant isolates from animals (pig and broiler chickens; feces), food source (pig carcasses) and humans (feces). These data indicate that swine and broiler chickens may be considered as reservoirs of multiresistant Salmonella spp. strains involved in sporadic cases of salmonellosis.;Keywords: Risk assessment, Salmonella spp., antimicrobial resistance, pork slaughterhouse, microbial contamination, risk management, HACCP...