German’s Green-party representative Anton Hofreiter requested information on the pathogen-load of slaughtered chicken placed on the market in Germany. The response of the secretary of parliament was that between 30% and 54% of all slaughtered chicken meat was contaminated with campylobacter, a pathogen causing diarrhea and fever. The percentage found in slaughterhouses was even higher: 79%, almost doubling from 2011. In 2016, approximately 74000 cases of campylobacter infections were reported in Germany, more than salmonella infections in the same year.
And combining this information with the fact that Germany’s pro capita consumption of chicken is, with 21 kg/head/year second after Portugal in Europe, the importance of Hofreiters’ request becomes apparent.
According to experts, the increase in the campylobacter is due to a lack of hygiene conditions in in slaughterhouses. This, in turn, is said to be caused by the time pressure under which slaughterhouse workers are, not allowing them sufficient time to cut precisely and avoid rupturing the campylobacter-harboring intestines.
EFSA has already evaluated the campylobacter situation and European regulators have introduced a new regulation addressing the issue of Campylobacter in broiler carcasses. While previously, poultry needed to be monitored already for salmonella, this new regulation amends the process hygiene criteria to include campylobacter. However, one has to bear in mind that enterobacteriaceae tend to be the better hygiene indicators, since negative results for salmonella and campylobacter do not always coincide with good hygiene practice. Nevertheless, it will be useful to monitor the spread of campylobacter through the supply chain. To actually reduce the number of contaminations with campylobacter and salmonella, food producers and food control authorities should closely monitor the biosafety measures in the breeding facility.
