Shelf Life and Microbiological Quality of Eviscerated Broiler Carcasses in the State of Kuwait PDF

Keywords

poultry, refrigerators, Kuwait

Abstract

Temperatures in display refrigerators of 42 food outlets were monitored to determine the shelf life of chilled poultry meat in Kuwait. Temperature fluctuations were also measured in 15 food outlets. Data showed that market storage temperatures were high averaging 8-10°C in more than 50% of the outlets surveyed and the temperature fluctuation in display refrigerators ranged between 1 and 6°C. Data on the shelf life of chilled poultry meat stored under simulated market storage temperatures showed that the spoilage rate was directly proportional to the storage temperature and the storage period. The shelf life after processing was about 7, 5 and 4 d at 4, 7 and 9°C, respectively. Incipient spoilage was first observed when the log count of spoilage reached >7.2 CFU/ml rinse. This was accompanied by changes in organoleptic characteristics (e.g., poor appearance, off-odors, slime formation and discoloration), increased values of total volatile nitrogen compounds, free fatty acids and decreased values of extract release volume. Data also showed high initial counts of E.coli and coliforms, indicating poor sanitation during slaughtering. As for food poisoning microorganisms, 60-80% of the samples tested positive for Salmonella, whereas Campylobacter was detected in all samples. The initial log count of Staphylococcus aureus was 3.4 CFU/ml. This count did not increase substantially during storage at 4-7°C, but increased rapidly to >4.4 CFU/ml after 3 d of storage at 9°C