A MODEL SYSTEM FOR THE STUDY OF MICROBIAL COLONIZATION IN POULTRY DEFEATHERING MACHINES

A model system has been developed to simulate key features of the mach inery environment in which feathers are removed from poultry carcasses during commercial processing. The model was designed to facilitate st udy of factors affecting microbial colonization of the machines, inclu ding environmental temperature, available nutrients and microbial comp etition. It involves a rapidly rotating rubber 'finger' contained in a tank in a laboratory incubator, where the 'finger' is sprayed continu ously with a microbial suspension in a blood-faecal extract medium. At tachment of cells of Staphylococcus aureus or Staph. sciuri to the rot ating 'finger' was demonstrated over a 6-h period at 28 degrees C.