Food of animal origin represents an important role in the epidemiology of human salmonellosis. In spite of the technological improvement, the chicken meat is subjected to bacterial contamination, mainly by microorganisms of the genus Salmonella that can be found in the intestinal tract or elsewhere on the chicken body. The aim of this study was to investigate the occurrence of Salmonella in chicken meat and cuts from the Northeast region of São Paulo State, Brazil. By conventional cultivation microbiological methods, 45 samples of carcasses, 60 samples of mechanically deboned meat (MDM), 25 samples of chicken sausages, 20 samples of chest, and 15 samples of chicken leg and thigh. Salmonella was found in 13.3% (6/45) of the carcass, 25% (15/60) of the MDM, 16% (4/25) of the sausages, 30% (6/20) of the chests and 13.3% (2/15) of the tight analysed. The results showed that 33 (20%) out of 165 samples were contaminated by Salmonella. Therefore, these samples were inappropriate for consumption, according to the Brazilian legislation.
chicken; mechanically deboned meat; Salmonella
