The source of contamination of ground meat for production of meat products with bacteria Staphylococcus aureus

In a plant for beef-slaughtering we established the sources of contamination of beef carcasses and ground meat, made from meat of beef carcasses and which are the most important places of contamination in the production process. We took altogether 250 smears from the surface of beef carcasses. The specimens were taken on five different areas on beef carcasses. The bacteria S. aureus was isolated on the thorax in 78 % (39/50) of the specimens, 62 % (31/50) on the front legs, 58 % (29/50) on the abdomen wall, 14 % (7/50) on the thigh and 10 % (5/50) on the neck. The established contaminations of workers’ hands was 50 % of specimens before the beginning of the work and 58.33 % of specimens taken after the handling of five slaughtered carcasses and are an important source of contamination of meat. For differentiation of separate strains of bacteria S. aureus we used the RAPD-PCR method and four different oligonucleotide primers OPJ5, OPJ6, E7 and E8. With genotypification of oligo-nucleotide primers OPJ%, E8 we proved the correlation between ground meat, hands, equipment and beef carcass. Because the surfaces of beef carcasses are contaminated with the same type of bacteria S. aureus as the hands of workers, establishing contamination of the surface of beef carcasses with bacteria S. aureus on the slaughtering line can be the indicator hygiene of work among workers on the slaughtering line. The major source of contamination of ground meat are the hands of workers (contamination of workers’ hands with bacteria S. aureus was 58.33 % of the specimen taken after the handling of five beef carcasses) and the contaminated surface of beef carcass (44.4 % of smears of surface of beef carcasses was contaminated with bacteria S. aureus). The contaminated surface of beef carcasses is crucial for contamination of ground meat as the meat goes to grinding.