U.S. Food safety and Inspection Service testing for Salmonella in selected raw meat and poultry products in the United States, 1998 through 2003: an establishment-level analysis.

The U.S. Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) pathogen reduction-hazard analysis critical control point systems final rule, published in 1996, established Salmonella performance standards for broiler chicken, cow and bull, market hog, and steer and heifer carcasses and for ground beef, chicken, and turkey meat. In 1998, the FSIS began testing to verify that establishments are meeting performance standards. Samples are collected in sets in which the number of samples is defined but varies according to product class. A sample set fails when the number of positive Salmonella samples exceeds the maximum number of positive samples allowed under the performance standard. Salmonella sample sets collected at 1,584 establishments from 1998 through 2003 were examined to identify factors associated with failure of one or more sets. Overall, 1,282 (80.9%) of establishments never had failed sets. In establishments that did experience set failure(s), generally the failed sets were collected early in the establishment testing history, with the exception of broiler establishments where failure(s) occurred both early and late in the course of testing. Small establishments were more likely to have experienced a set failure than were large or very small establishments, and broiler establishments were more likely to have failed than were ground beef, market hog, or steer-heifer establishments. Agency response to failed Salmonella sample sets in the form of in-depth verification reviews and related establishment-initiated corrective actions have likely contributed to declines in the number of establishments that failed sets. A focus on food safety measures in small establishments and broiler processing establishments should further reduce the number of sample sets that fail to meet the Salmonella performance standard.

U.S. Food Safety and Inspection Service testing for Salmonella in selected raw meat and poultry products in the United States, 1998 through 2003: analysis of set results.

The U.S. Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) tests sets of samples of selected raw meat and poultry products for Salmonella to ensure that federally inspected establishments meet performance standards defined in the pathogen reduction-hazard analysis and critical control point system (PR-HACCP) final rule. In the present report, sample set results are described and associations between set failure and set and establishment characteristics are identified for 4,607 sample sets collected from 1998 through 2003. Sample sets were obtained from seven product classes: broiler chicken carcasses (n = 1,010), cow and bull carcasses (n = 240), market hog carcasses (n = 560), steer and heifer carcasses (n = 123), ground beef (n = 2,527), ground chicken (n = 31), and ground turkey (n = 116). Of these 4,607 sample sets, 92% (4,255) were collected as part of random testing efforts (A sets), and 93% (4,166) passed. However, the percentage of positive samples relative to the maximum number of positive results allowable in a set increased over time for broilers but decreased or stayed the same for the other product classes. Three factors associated with set failure were identified: establishment size, product class, and year. Set failures were more likely early in the testing program (relative to 2003). Small and very small establishments were more likely to fail than large ones. Set failure was less likely in ground beef than in other product classes. Despite an overall decline in set failures through 2003, these results highlight the need for continued vigilance to reduce Salmonella contamination in broiler chicken and continued implementation of programs designed to assist small and very small establishments with PR-HACCP compliance issues.