December 14, 2020

Fewer pig farms in Germany face increased Salmonella risk

Germany's QS Salmonella monitoring system has revealed a 50% drop in the critical Salmonella classification (category III farms) compared to 2019.

This year, only 1.6% of nearly 20,000 German pig farms showed an increased risk compared to 3.3% in 2019.

Since the beginning of the QS Salmonella monitoring 17 years ago, the risk of a Salmonella infection on pig farms has never been so low, according to Dr. Hermann-Josef Nienhoff, managing director of QS, a German quality assurance organisation.

Awareness of Salmonella has steadily increased along the entire value chain. This low Salmonella risk could only be achieved by a joint approach of all parties involved across companies, said Nienhoff.

In 2003, QS made Salmonella monitoring mandatory for all pig farmers who send animals for slaughter. Samples are taken at the slaughterhouses, tested for the presence of Salmonella antibodies in QS-approved laboratories, and the analysis results are recorded in the QS Salmonella database.

Every quarter, pig farmers receive a status report of all results with evaluations.

- QS (Germany)