Occurrence of cancer in women in the meat industry.
(65/93)
A follow up study of 7261 white women from a meatcutters' union was conducted between July 1949 and December 1980. Proportional mortality ratio (PMR) and standardised mortality ratio (SMR) analyses, using the United States general population mortality rates, were conducted for the group as a whole and for subgroups defined according to the four main job categories in the meat industry, and a fifth category of workers from outside the industry but belonging to the same union (control group). At least a threefold risk of death was observed both for myeloid leukaemia and non-Hodgkin's lymphomas among workers in the meat department of retail food stores. No excess risk from these diseases was observed in the control group. SMRs of 4.56, 4.02, and 1.95, which were statistically significant, were observed for lung cancer among workers in chicken slaughtering plants, meatpacking plants, and retail food stores respectively. The lung cancer SMR for abattoir workers was 1.41 (not significant) and 1.11 for workers in non-meat companies. The role of potentially harmful exposures within the industry in the occurrence of these excesses is discussed. (+info)
Mortality from non-malignant diseases among women in the meat industry.
(66/93)
A mortality follow up study was conducted among 7261 white female members in a local meatcutter's union in Baltimore, Maryland, between July 1949 and December 1980. The group was divided into four main job categories within the meat industry and a control group of non-meat workers belonging to the same union. Mortality in each of these subgroups was compared with that of white women in the United States general population through the determination of cause specific standardised mortality ratios. No increased risk of death from non-malignant causes was observed in any job category within the meat industry. Some caution should, however, be exercised in interpretating this finding, as few workers in chicken slaughtering plants died. (+info)
Sources of contamination of cooked, ready-to-eat cured and uncured meats.
(67/93)
Forty-five samples of unsliced, cooked, ready-to-eat meats on sale in retail premises and supermarkets were examined. Thirty-six (80%) had Escherichia coli I and 21 (47%) had coagulase positive staphylococci in numbers ranging from 1 to > 1000/100 cm.(2). Twenty-one samples contained Clostridium spp. in numbers from 1 to > 100/100 cm.(2). Of the 45 samples tested, 11 (factory-produced) and 7 (home-produced) were examined after cooking but before being offered for sale. Cooked hams were contaminated after handling in a factory, as were samples of canned corned beef after sale and exposure for 24 hr. Some sources of contamination were: (a) raw beef, (b) factory and shop surfaces and equipment, and (c) workers' hands. Curing brines used in retail shops and supermarkets to produce corned beef were a potent source of contamination. The effect of holding cooked meats at ambient temperature on their spoilage (22 degrees C) and food-poisoning (37 degrees C) microflora was demonstrated. (+info)
The isolation of Escherichia coli from a poultry packing station and an abattoir.
(68/93)
The distribution and serotype of strains of Escherichia coli from a poultry packing station and an abattoir are described. The results indicated that animal faecal strains contaminated the environment and the animal carcasses.Using 150 O antisera, a high proportion of the E. coli strains were non-typable. This suggests that the serotype distribution of E. coli in animals is different from that in man.Strains with single antigenic differences were isolated, and the possibility of genetic transfer of these antigenic structures is suggested. (+info)
Salmonella typhimurium contamination of processed broiler chickens after a subclinical infection.
(69/93)
A subclinical infection of Salmonella typhimurium in a broiler flock was investigated and attempts were made to eradicate the infection by treatment with furazolidone. One-quarter of the chickens were still infected after they had been through the processing plant. Washing in heavily chlorinated water reduced the number of contaminated carcasses. Infected chickens were also found in four other companion flocks on the same farm. (+info)
The survival of salmonellas on finger-tips and transfer of the organisms to foods.
(70/93)
The survival of salmonellas on the finger-tips is considered with reference to the ease with which they can be transferred to food by handling.Escherichia coli and several Salmonella serotypes were shown to survive on the finger-tips for various periods of time, for example, S. anatum could be recovered 3 hr. after artificially contaminating them with between 500 and 2000 organisms. S. anatum could also be recovered from the finger-tips after contaminating them with more than 6000 organisms followed by a 15 sec. hand-wash 10 min. later. Similarly, the survivors from minimal inocula of less than 100 S. anatum/finger-tip were, after 10 min., still capable of infecting samples of corned beef and ham. E. coli was isolated from the finger-tips of 13 of 110 butchers soon after they had left the meat line at a meat products factory, but was not detected on the finger-tips of 100 volunteers at the Central Public Health Laboratory.The implications of the present findings to the spread of salmonellas from raw to cooked foods, and the relevance of this to outbreaks of Salmonella infection in the general population and in hospitals, are discussed. (+info)
Salmonella contamination in a poultry-processing plant.
(71/93)
Bacteriological examination of 1,427 samples from a poultry-processing plant over a 2-year period yielded 202 (14.2%) cultures positive for salmonellae. The results indicate that contamination is reduced by washing procedures within the plant but that recontamination of the carcasses occurred in at least two different stages of processing, i.e., during evisceration and chilling. There was evidence of spread of salmonellae from flock to flock during the serial processing of flocks, but the spread was usually not extensive. The serotypes of salmonellae isolated in this study were similar to those of chicken origin reported from other areas of the country. (+info)
Salmonellae associated with further-processed turkey products.
(72/93)
"Further-processed" turkey products, prepared from chilled, eviscerated, and thawed carcasses at two commercial turkey-processing plants, were evaluated, for the presence of salmonellae. These organisms were isolated from swab samples from 12% of chilled, eviscerated turkey carcasses, 27% of finished products, and 24% of processing equipment. The same serotypes as those found throughout a plant on any one visit were recovered from 31% of rinse-samples taken from hands and gloves of processing personnel. Salmonellae were found in samples taken on 37 of 48 visits; a greater number of recoveries were made on days when freshly killed turkeys were processed (87%) than when frozen-defrosted carcasses were processed (59%). The predominant serotype isolated from meat and environment usually changed from visit to visit. Salmonella sandiego and Salmonella anatum were the most frequent among 23 serotypes recovered. Most of the isolated serotypes are commonly associated with turkeys and have been incriminated as causative agents of human salmonellosis. The implication is that further-processed turkey products, if inadequately cooked by the consumer and if improperly refrigerated between the time of manufacture and consumption, could directly transmit salmonellae. These same products might also contaminate other foods by introducing salmonellae into food-preparation areas. (+info)