Prevalence of Salmonella spp. in chicken meat from Quetta retail outlets and typing through multiplex PCR

A study was conducted to investigate the prevalence of Salmonella spp. in processed raw frozen and fresh poultry meat sold in retail markets and shops of Quetta, Pakistan. A total of 200 samples (100 each of fresh and frozen meat samples) were randomly collected from retailers during the period of March to September 2016. Out of 200 samples tested, 66 (33%) were found to be contaminated with Salmonella spp. The contamination rate of frozen samples was 30% as compared to 36% of fresh meat samples. Out of 66 Salmonella positive samples, the most prevalent sero-groups identified were S. enteritidis (43.9%) followed by S. typhimurium (30.3%), S. gallinarum (16.6%), S. pullorum (7.6%) and S. typhi (1.5%). Our findings highlight the magnitude of Salmonella contamination in chicken meat sold in the city of Quetta and demonstrate the efficacy of biochemical characterization and typing through multiplex PCR. The results indicate an urgent need for applying proper food hygiene practices in the Quetta region to reduce the incidence of foodborne diseases.