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Page No. : 96-98

ABSTRACT

Listeria monocytogenes is an important foodborne pathogen widely distributed in the environment as well as variety of food. Listeriosis is predominantly a food related illness since 99% of all human listeriosis cases result from consumption of food products, however the presence of the bacterium in other food-associated environments like retail establishments and meat processing facilities can also contribute to food contamination and transmission to human beings. This study was conducted with the objective of investigating the occurrence of Listeria spp. in meat shop environment in Punjab. A total of 53 swabs (15 hands swabs, 19 knife swabs and 19 chopping boards) were collected from retail outlets, butcher shops of the local market and slaughter houses in Punjab. A two-step enrichment procedure followed by plating on selective agar and confi rmation by conventional PCR was followed. None of the samples screened in the study showed presence of Listeria spp. The absence of Listeria spp. in hand, knife and chopping board swabs indicate that hygienic measures are successfully applied to a certain extent in retail shops. Moreover, the absence of Listeria spp. in the swabs could be a! ributed to the actual lower contamination of chicken with Listeria spp., hence lesser chances of cross-contamination of knives, chopping boards, hands or other meat processing environment from poultry meat.
Keywords: Listeria, meat shops, prevalence, swabs