Purpose: Environmental sampling in a poultry grow-out house, combined with carcass rinse sampling from the same flock, may provide a relative assessment of Campylobacter contamination and transmission.
Methods: Air samples (collected onto gelatin filters), fecal/litter samples (from disposable boot covers), and sponge samples (feed pans and drink lines) were collected from four commercial chicken grow-out houses. Birds from the sampled house were the first flock slaughtered the following day, and were sampled by post-chill carcass rinses. Quantitative and qualitative detection methods were used to determine Campylobacter contamination in each environmental sample and carcass rinse.
Results: Campylobacter, from Campy-Cefex agar plates after enrichment, was detected from 27% (32/120) of house environmental samples and 37.5% (45/120) of carcass rinse samples. All sample types from each house included at least one positive sample except for the air samples from House 2. Samples from House 1 and associated carcass rinses accounted for the highest total of Campylobacter positives (29/60). And, the fewest number of Campylobacter positives, from both house environmental (4/30) and carcass rinse samples (8/30) were detected from Flock 2.
Significance: Environmental sampling techniques provide a non-invasive and efficient way to test for foodborne pathogens. Correlating qualitative or quantitative Campylobacter levels from house environmental samples and post-chill carcass rinse samples may enable the scheduled processing of flocks with lower pathogen incidence or concentrations, as a way to reduce post-slaughter pathogen transmission.