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The Contribution of Soiled Surfaces Within Feather Picking Machines to Campylobacter Counts on Broiler Carcasses

USDA-ARS-Russell Research Center, PO Box 5677 Athens, Georgia 30604-5677

Correspondence: M. E. Berrang, E-mail: mberrang{at}saa.ars.usda.gov

Numbers of Campylobacter detected on broiler carcasses decrease due to scalding but rebound during defeathering. Earlier research indicated that escape of gut contents during defeathering is an important contributor to the increase in Campylobacter numbers, whereas aerosols created by feather picking machines are not. The objective of this study was to determine if contact with surfaces in naturally contaminated commercial feather picking machines contributes to the increased counts of Campylobacter on broiler carcasses. Fully processed chilled carcasses with low numbers of Campylobacter were used as a platform to measure numbers after picking. Chilled carcasses were hung on shackles and allowed to proceed through 3 empty feather picking machines in a commercial processing plant that had been previously soiled by about 20,000 broilers. In 4 of 5 replications, although Campylobacter numbers increased on plant run control birds during defeathering, no increase in Campylobacter numbers was noted on chilled carcasses due to passage through the pickers. In one replication, however, a significant increase was observed. It is possible for contact with soiled surfaces within feather picking machines to increase Campylobacter numbers detected on broiler carcasses. However, overall these data suggest that naturally contaminated surfaces of feather picking machines are not a primary cause of the reported increase in Campylobacter numbers during defeathering.

Key Words: broiler • Campylobacter • defeathering • feather picking • surface contamination