[The secondary microbial colonization of organ samples for bacterial meat examination]

The capability of bacteria to penetrate liver, spleen, and kidney samples was investigated, using one strain each of Salmonella typhimurium. Serratia marcescens, and Micrococcus luteus. The intact organ capsule was found to be an effective barrier to bacterial invasion, even at room temperature and with high contamination doses. Injuries to or absence of the organ capsule led to massive secondary germ colonisation of samples within 5 hours, even under conditions of cool storage. Germ colonisation of the sample interior will inevitably start from cut surfaces and cannot be prevented, if samples have to be stored several hours or transported, since sterile sampling is not possible under slaughterhouse conditions. Hence, new approaches have to be found to bacteriological carcass inspection.