Critical control points for pig-carcass contamination in two Greek slaughterhouses

The objective of this study was to assess the association between Salmonella carriage in mesenteric lymph nodes and/or intestinal contents of pigs at slaughter and the contamination of tonsils and head lymph nodes of the same animal. Samples were taken from 90 pigs in an abattoir with high prevalence of Salmonella positive pigs at slaughter. From each animal mesenteric lymph nodes (ML), intestinal contents (!C), tonsil and mandibular lymph node pools (HP) were taken. In 71 (79%) slaughtered pigs Salmonella was isolated in at least one of these samples. There was no significant relationship between Salmonella detection in ML or IC and positive HP, but animals positive in HP had likewise positive LM and/or IC. The three materials collected were altogether positive for Salmonella in 22 animals (31 %), pointing to the possibility that these animals carried the pathogen already at the finishing farm