Abstract

In the meat sector, different crises, but also the recurring food-poisoning cases, have undermined public confidence in intensive or industrial meat producing systems. Consumers are, therefore, turning to traditional products. Traditional fermented dry sausages account for a significant part in such a domain. Traditional dry sausages rely on natural contamination by environmental flora. This microbiota is usually referred to as “house flora”. This paper reviews the diversity of microbiota in small-scale processing units, during production process of the traditional fermented dry sausages Petrovac sausage.  A total of 62 samples from two households in Vojvodina, Serbia were tested. Testing comprised microbiological, immunoenzimatic (Vidas, L. monocytogenes Xpress (LMX), bioMérieux) and molecular tests (PCR). The presence of aerobic bacteria,Escherichia coli, Enteroccocus spp., Staphylococcus aureus, Aerobic spore-forming bacteria, Enterobacteriaceae and Listeria spp. was detected. Regardless of the microorganisms, knives had the lowest contamination level (<2 logcfu/cm²), while the saw after cutting had the highest ones (˃8 logcfu/cm²). Listeria monocytogenes andStaphylococcus aureus were detected in 2.77%, while E. coli was enumerated in 6.7%. Presence of Listeria monocytogenes was detected in swabs from the drain (2.28±0.02log₁₀CFU/cm²), the mincing (2.02±0.46 log₁₀CFU/cm²) and stuffing (2.30±0log₁₀CFU/cm²) machines. The knowledge is crucial for the improvement of hygiene control system in traditional meat processing industries.

Key words: Petrovac sausage, house flora, Listeria monocytogenes, critical points.