A rapid immunofluorescence technique for detecting salmonellae in raw meat

Abstract

A rapid 18 hr. technique has been developed for detecting salmonella contaminated carcass and boneless meats. It is based on 43° C. selenite enrichment of samples, followed by immunofluorescent detection of salmonella cells in the enrichment. In tests with 286 meat samples the rapid and conventional techniques agreed in the detection of 93 positive and 149 negative samples. The two tests failed to agree for the remaining 44 samples. The rapid technique thus lacks precision, but could be used as a rapid ‘presumptive’ salmonella test, so that contaminated material could be prevented from reaching the processing lines of food factories.We thank Dr Betty Hobbs of the Food Hygiene Laboratory for kindly sup plying the meat samples used in this investigation, Dr Patricia Bradstreet of the Standards Laboratory for Serological Reagents for the salmonella diagnostic antisera and Mr R. Kenworthy for performing the goat injections.