Exploring microbial diversity during the artisanal Salchich´on production: Food safety in the consumer spotlight

11 pages, 4 figures, 4 tables.-- Under a Creative Commons license

A study was conducted to evaluate the microbiological quality, safety, and variability along the production chain of two artisanal salchichón factories in Andalusia. Aerobic mesophilic bacteria (AMB), total coliforms, coagulase-positive Staphylococcus spp. (CPS), lactic-acid bacteria, moulds and yeasts and the presence of bacterial pathogens were investigated in 3 batches of raw materials, finished products, food-contact surfaces (FCS) and indoor ambient air by using classical microbiological and PCR/PFGE techniques. Of the 171 samples analysed, high inter-batch variability in microbial loads was observed. The prevalence of Listeria monocytogenes and Staphylococcus aureus in samples was 7.01% and 4.67%, respectively. Raw meat and FCS were identified as the potential sources of contamination of the finished products, with 16.67% testing positive for L. monocytogenes and 10% for S. aureus. Diverse sources of L. monocytogenes and a wide range of high pulsotypes were identified in the smaller producer. Although the largest producer showed better hygiene control, L. monocytogenes was detected in salchichón samples with growth-supporting physicochemical values. Therefore, the implementation of food safety management systems, hygiene measures for raw materials and monitoring of hazards are encouraged. Finally, the findings of this study offer valuable and current empirical data that can be used in risk assessments

The authors wish to thank the Spanish Government (Ministry of Science and Innovation, research project PID2019-108420RB-C31-ASEQURA) for its financial support and also, to EU PRIMA program and the International Joint Programming (Project Reference PCI2019-103453) R&D Projects 2019, in the frame of the Plan Estatal de Investigación Científica y Técnica y de Innovación 2017–2020: State R&D Program Oriented to the Challenges of the Society, for funding the ArtiSaneFood project (PRIMA/0001/2018)

Peer reviewed