Day 091 - 17 Feb 95 - Page 53


     
     1   Q.   You do not test for that then?
     2        A.  We do not routinely test.  We do test for listeria in
     3        our factory which produces cooked products and we have
     4        actually eradicated listeria from that factory by having a
     5        suitable hygiene programme.
     6
     7   Q.   But it is not something that you look for before you cook
     8        anything?
     9        A.  No.
    10
    11   Q.   What was the rate of salmonella about five years ago in Sun
    12        Valley Poultry products, in the meat, in the birds, sorry?
    13        A.  The only testing that we routinely did in birds five
    14        years ago was in meat and in the skins of the necks as
    15        birds were slaughtered.  We would expect to see about a 30
    16        per cent isolation rate from neck skins at that time.
    17
    18   Q.   Is that a less common location for finding salmonella?
    19        A.  No, that would be the industry standard practice to
    20        look.  The neck skin is likely to be the most contaminated
    21        area, and so the normal practice was to look at that as an
    22        indicator of the contamination rate from salmonella.
    23
    24   Q.   So five years ago it was found in 30 per cent of the
    25        birds.  What percentage of the meat was it found in?
    26        A.  We found in percentage terms it was about 20 to 25 per
    27        cent of meat samples could be, deboned, meat samples could
    28        be contaminated.
    29
    30   Q.   How does it become less?
    31        A.  The -----
    32
    33   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Does that have something to do with where you
    34        are looking for it?
    35        A.  Yes, I think with a salmonella eradication programme
    36        there are three very important areas to look at.  The feed,
    37        the animal feed is a source, the breeding flocks and the
    38        farm's environment.  We have chosen to concentrate on the
    39        animal feed and the breeding flocks to get rid of
    40        salmonella in those areas as a first step towards reducing
    41        the incidence.
    42
    43   Q.   All I mean is you are testing the neck because that is
    44        where you are most likely to find it.  The meat you are
    45        testing has mostly, if not all, not come from the neck; it
    46        has come from the parts of the bird which are where you are
    47        less likely to find salmonella anyway.  So a drop from 30
    48        per cent to 20 to 25 per cent in the boned meat would not
    49        be at all surprising?
    50        A.  No. 
    51 
    52   MS. STEEL:  The current testing procedures, you still test the 
    53        necks now, do you?
    54        A.  Yes, we do.
    55
    56   Q.   Currently you say it is one per cent, was it?
    57        A.  No.  We see one per cent of birds coming into the
    58        factory as being contaminated.
    59
    60   Q.   Right.

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