PREVALENCE OF SALMONELLA, YERSINIA, AEROMONAS, CAMPYLOBACTER, AND COLD-GROWING ESCHERICHIA-COLI ON FRESHLY DRESSED LAMB CARCASSES

Thirty lamb carcasses were analyzed for selected bacteria just after s laughter. The frequency of isolation was Salmonella (10%), motile aero monads (33%), Yersinia enter enterocolitica (20%) and cold tolerant Es cherichia coli (56.6%). Campylobacter was not detected. Seven isolates of Salmonella (identified as S. typhimurium) grew at 7 degrees C. The 16 isolates of motile aeromonads were identified as A. hydrophila (8 strains), A. caviae (7 strains), and unidentified (1 strain). The perc entage of carcasses carrying presumptively virulent aeromonads was 13. 3%. None of the 21 strains of Yersinia enterocolitica were found to be presumptively virulent. Among them, 3 belonged to biovar 1 and 4 to b iovar 3, 3 lacked one property of biovar 3, and 11 had properties of b oth biovars. Of the 85 cold-growing strains of E. coli, 31 were sorbit ol negative. The O157 antigen was not detected among these isolates. T he structure of abattoirs and slaughtering practices influenced the co ntamination of carcasses with certain organisms (i.e., salmonellae and E. coli).