The research was funded by the poultry
industry which faces a challenge to greatly reduce salmonella in its processing
plants.
Some are lobbying to have salmonella
declared a contaminant, meaning there would be zero tolerance for processed,
retail-ready chicken and chicken products.
Foster Farms of California has
demonstrated that the incidence of salmonella can be cut to two per cent, which
is far below the industry average of about 20 per cent.
That came after a massive recall of
salmonella-contaminated products that officially sickened 634 people, and
probably thousands more who did not seek medical care.
The Arkansas test identifies all types
of salmonella and can specifically identify S. enteritidis, S. Heidelberg and
S. typhimurium.
