Bacteriophage application on red meats and poultry: Effects on Salmonella population in final ground products

This research was conducted to study the effects of bacteriophage application during tumbling on Salmonella populations in ground meat and poultry. Red meat trim and poultry were inoculated with a Salmonella cocktail to result in a contamination level of 7logCFU/g in ground products. A commercial preparation containing bacteriophages S16 and Felix-O1a (FO1a) was applied during tumbling at 107 and 108PFU/ml. Samples were held at 4°C for 6h and 18h (red meat) and 30min and 6h (poultry). Overall, bacteriophage application on trim reduced 1 and 0.8logCFU/g of Salmonella in ground beef and ground pork, respectively. For ground chicken and ground turkey, Salmonella was reduced by 1.1 and 0.9logCFU/g, respectively. This study shows that bacteriophage application during tumbling of red meat trim and poultry can provide additional Salmonella control in ground products. •Bacteriophage application reduced Salmonella in ground meat and poultry.•Bacteriophage can be applied on meats by using existent equipment and adopting current methodologies.•Bacteriophage application on trim at 108PFU/ml reduced approximately 1logCFU/g of Salmonella in ground products.•Bacteriophages were able to reduce Salmonella in meats under processing temperatures.