January 5, 2009
EU to implement new salmonella tests for turkeys in 2010
Turkey producers in EU are urged to start preparing for new salmonella testing and monitoring rules set to come into force in 2010 as the sector becomes the new target by the EU Zoonoses Directive.
The EU aims to lower the strain's presence by 1 percent or lower in 2012.
To achieve this goal, Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) in UK has drawn a draft National Control Plan, which from January 2010 will require all fattening flocks with more than 300 birds to test for salmonella three weeks before slaughter.
Breeding flocks for rearing will have to be tested at day old, four weeks old, and two weeks before movement to a laying unit, with adult laying flocks of more than 50 birds tested every three weeks during lay and three weeks before slaughter.
Producers can carry out the sampling themselves, using mainly boot swabs and dust samples, and must send them to an approved laboratory.
Results in a survey conducted by the EU show that 13.6 percent of breeding flocks and 30.7 percent of fattening flocks tested positive for salmonella, with the incidence varying from nil to 82.9 percent across member states.
