Purpose: This study conducted semi quantitative risk assessment of C. jejuni on various types of processed meat products using FDA-iRISK to compare their risk at retail market.
Methods: Dry-cured ham, round ham with sodium nitrite, garlic seasoning ham with sodium nitrite, round ham without sodium nitrite, garlic seasoning ham without sodium nitrite, and sausage without sodium nitrite were inoculated with a cocktail mixture of two C. jejuni strains (ATCC 33560, NCTC 11168) at a concentration of 6.0 ± 0.5 log CFU/g. The inoculated samples were vacuum-packed and incubated at 4 and 10°C. The experimental data and data in the literature were used as input data for FDA-iRISK.
Results: C. jejuni survived better in processed meat products at 4°C than at 10°C in all samples. The value of total DALYs per year was higher at 4°C. The lowest risk was observed in dry-cured ham at 10°C, followed by sausage without sodium nitrite, round ham with sodium nitrite, garlic seasoning ham with sodium nitrite, garlic seasoning ham without sodium nitrite, and round ham without sodium nitrite. Overall, the risk of ham with sodium nitrite was lower than the risk of ham without sodium nitrite. However, the antimicrobial effects of the garlic seasoning were not observed.
Significance: The greater risk of C. jejuni in various processed meat products was observed at 4°C than at 10°C. However, risk of C. jejuni in processed meat products even at 10°C should not be overlooked since the C. jejuni has a low infectious dose. Therefore, care must be taken to avoid contamination of C. jejuni on processed meat products.