Efficiency of different enrichment and isolation procedures for the detection of Salmonella serotypes in edible offal

Rapid detection systems for Salmonella in foodstuffs are currently being developed. However, existing standards still call for application of traditional methods employing pre-enrichment followed by selective enrichment and isolation. The efficacy of various methods was tested using 264 chicken and lamb organ meats. Pre-enrichment was carried out in Tryptone Soy Broth (TSB) and enrichment in Tetrathionate Brilliant Green Broth (TTB) at 37 degrees C, Selenite Broth with Brilliant Green and Sulphapyridine at 37 degrees C and 43 degrees C, and Rappaport-Vassiliadis Broth (RV 10) at 42 degrees C. The isolation media were Brilliant Green Agar (BGA), Deoxycholate Citrate Agar, Hektoen Enteric Agar (HEA) and Salmonella-Shigella Agar. Enrichment in RV/42 degrees C followed by isolation on BGA as recommended by ISO standard no. 6579 and enrichment in TTB/37 degrees C followed by isolation in HEA, no longer recommended by that standard, produced the best results. Low percentages of positive samples and difficulties in detecting Salmonella are the result of interference by competing organisms (Enterobacteriaceae) and the number of salmonellas present after enrichment. A total of 528 samples (TSB, eggs, lamb liver and chicken liver) were inoculated with Salm. enteritidis, Salm. kapemba and Salm. virchow, and the preceding experiment was repeated. All the TSB and egg samples tested positive, but the percentage of positive samples from the lamb and chicken liver was only 81-92%. Recovery of the salmonellas did not depend upon the method employed or the serotype inoculated but instead on interference by competing flora and the numbers of Salmonella present in the samples.