Predominant microbial spoilage populations associated with the skin of
refrigerated poultry were enumerated and characterized on 24 fresh bi
rds, sampled immediately after air chilling and packaging, and 48 micr
obiologically spoiled birds, from a South African processing plant. To
tal aerobic plate counts, cram-negative counts, lactic acid bacteria c
ounts and yeast counts were determined, and the incidence of Salmonell
a investigated The highest microbial numbers were consistently obtaine
d for total aerobic plate counts, followed by Gram-negative, lactic ac
id bacteria and yeast counts, in decreasing order Characterization of
139 predominant bacterial isolates from total aerobic plate counts of
fresh birds indicated the presence of Enterobacteriaceae (30.2%), Micr
ococcus (18.6%) and the fluorescent Pseudomonas group (13.9%). On spoi
led birds, Enterobacteriaceae (29.2%) and the fluorescent Pseudomonas
(21.8%) and Aeromonas/Vibrio (15.6%) groups predominated. The microflo
ra (139 isolates) responsible for Gram-negative counts of fresh carcas
ses was dominated by the Aeromonas/Vibrio group (65.1%), Enterobacteri
aceae (16.4%) and the non-fluorescent Pseudomonas group (11.6%). Gram-
negative bacterial isolates of spoiled carcasses were dominated by the
fluorescent Pseudomonas (32.3%), Aeromonas/Vibrio (29.2%) and non-flu
orescent Pseudomonas (24.0%) groups as well as Enterobacteriaceae (10.
4%). Predominant lactic acid bacteria were pediococci (89.3%) on fresh
birds and homofermentative lactobacilli (81.6%) on spoiled carcasses.
Salmonella serotypes Blockley, Reading and Schwarzengrund were isolat
ed from fresh and spoiled carcasses.