Veterinary Medicine

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Browsing Veterinary Medicine by Author "Chabwasi, Isaac Manyori"

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    Quantitative risk assessment of developing salmonellosis through beef consumption in Lusaka Province, Zambia
    (University of Zambia, 2016) Chabwasi, Isaac Manyori
    Bacteria of the genus Salmonella may cause disease in many host species (including humans). Consumption of infected beef products has been linked to zoonotic transmission of diseases in humans. The aim was to quantitatively assess the risk of developing salmonellosis through consumption of beef in Lusaka province of Zambia, based on the Codex Alimentarious framework. Data used to achieve this objective were obtained from reviews of scientific literature, government reports, questionnaire survey and expert opinions. The Swift Quantitative Microbial Risk Assessment (SQMRA) model was used to analyse the data. The study was driven by lack of research-based information in this area despite the reported cases of salmonellosis in human and the prevalence of Salmonella in beef carcasses being 22% (Hang’ombe et al., 2008). The results of questionnaire survey on beef consumption showed that 60 percent of people in Lusaka consumed beef once every week, 16 percent consumed once in every two weeks, 15 percent consumed beef once a month and 9 percent consumed every day. Out of the 100 persons interviewed, 89 percent consumed well cooked beef, 9 percent half cooked and only 2 percent consumed raw beef. The average serving portion of beef per meal/individual was 192gm for restaurant consumer while 60gm and 83.1gm were for low and medium levels of beef consumer respectively. At ID50 of 9.61x103 cfu/g and retail contamination concentration of 12cfu/gm, the risk of developing salmonellosis through consumption of beef prepared by consumers with low and medium levels of beef consumption was estimated at 0.06% and 0.08%, respectively, while the risk associated with restaurant consumption was estimated at 0.16% per year. The study concludes that the risk of developing salmonellosis among residents in Lusaka province, as results of beef consumption, was generally low, mainly due to the methods used for food preparation. Further work is required to broaden the scope of the study and also undertake microbiological evaluation of ready-to eat beef from both household and restaurant risk exposure pathways.