Salmonellae on posts, hand-rails and hands in a beef abattoir

Counts of salmonellae were done by the most probable number technique on samples collected from the hands of abattoir workers as well as on samples from hand-rails and posts regularly touched by the workers. Salmonellae were isolated from the hands of 52% of the workers who handled the hide. They had the highest average counts with counts ranging from 0 to greater than 3663 salmonellae. The remaining workers on the slaughter floor and those in the boning room had generally lower counts with contamination rates of 28% and 45% respectively. Only 3 of the 100 samples collected from the hand-rails and posts contained salmonellae. The average count was 0.11 per 100 cm2.