Regional <i>Salmonella</i> Differences in United States Broiler Production from 2016 to 2020 and the Contribution of Multiserovar Populations to <i>Salmonella</i> Surveillance
Amy T. Siceloff, Doug Waltman, Nikki W. Shariat
Abstract
Salmonella is a leading cause of bacterial foodborne illness in the United States, with poultry as a significant Salmonella reservoir. We show the relative decrease in Salmonella over a 5-year period from 2016 to 2020 in processed chicken parts and highlight regional differences with respect to the prevalence of clinically important Salmonella serovars. Our results show that the discrepancy between Salmonella serovars found in pre- and postharvest poultry during surveillance are due in part by the limited detection depth offered by traditional culture techniques. Despite the reduction of Salmonella at processing, the number of human salmonellosis cases has remained stable, which may be attributed to differences in virulence among serovars and their associated risk. When monitoring for Salmonella, it is imperative to identify all serovars present to appropriately assess public health risk and to implement the most effective Salmonella controls.