$75m investment yields significant improvements
Foster Farms shares data management tips that cut Salmonella rates to less than 5%
Dr Robert O’Connor, Foster Farms’ senior vice president of technical services, discussed the firm’s Salmonella reduction plan at the Delmarva Poultry Industry’s National Meeting on Poultry Health, Processing and Live Production.
He detailed the intensive data collection and analysis program that the Livingston, California-based poultry company credits with much of the Salmonella decline, according to Foster Farms.
‘A shared responsibility’
“While Salmonella occurs naturally in poultry, our program demonstrates that the application of data collection and analysis can contribute to significant reductions and control,” O’Connor said.
“At Foster Farms, we believe food safety is a shared responsibility. That is why we are sharing what we’ve learned with the industry,” he added. “Salmonella is a national issue that producers and regulators can address together to benefit consumers.”
Five key elements
Foster Farms’ systemwide data management program begins before birds enter the ranch and continues through product purchase, according to the company. O’Connor outlined the program’s components as follows:
- Collaboration and information sharing with all stakeholders, including national and state health and regulatory agencies, external advisors and other producers. The company formed a Food Safety Advisory Board to inform and validate its strategic approach. As part of this collaboration, O’Connor leads a National Chicken Council committee on Salmonella reduction at the parts level.
- Extensive data collection: Salmonella sampling is done during live production at the ranch and throughout processing. Foster Farms’ internal microbiology lab performs Salmonella testing 365 days a year. The lab has doubled annual testing from 80,000 to 160,000 tests.
- Analysis of internal data: Foster Farms has introduced sampling programs, including a rigorous bio-mapping process. The company examined more than 8,000 samples prior to production to identify trends at individual ranches and environmental factors including location and potential impact from neighboring properties.
- Acting on data: Based on the results of its bio-mapping study, Foster Farms developed procedures for environmental control in and around its poultry houses that effectively eliminated Salmonella between flock placements. Adjustments to operations, facility equipment and processing-plant-employee training further improved food safety.
- Measuring results: Foster Farms now continuously measures Salmonella incidence at all stages of production to ensure ongoing control and to anticipate natural variations affecting bird health. The company has observed continual declines in incidence in packaged parts over the last seven months, and has maintained an incidence of under 5% – one-fifth of the industry average.
From hot seat to spotlight
“Foster Farms’ consistently low Salmonella levels in raw chicken parts are the result of a $75m program it developed over the past year,” the company said in a statement. The firm's investment comes after an outbreak of Salmonella Heidelberg that was linked to its fresh chicken products.
Between March 1, 2013 and July 11, 2014, the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) received reports of 634 cases of Salmonella Heidelberg infection from 29 states and Puerto Rico.
The outbreak involved seven different strains of the bacterium, all of which were resistant to antibiotics. No deaths were reported, but 38% of those infected were hospitalized.
