INFLUENCE OF SELECTED CHEMICAL ADDITIVES AND APPLICATION LEVELS ON BACTERIOLOGICAL SAFETY OF CHICKEN BREAST MEAT

The study was conducted to investigate the effects of selected chemical additives and their application levels on the bacteriological safety of chicken breast meat. A factorial experiment involving four widely used chemical additives (Monosodium glutamate, Sodium nitrate, Monosodium phosphate and Sodium chloride) and three application levels (1, 2 and 3% w/w) was laid in in a completely randomized design (CRD). A total of 15 average weight broiler chickens were slaughtered and cut into primal cuts. Chicken breast meat was collected and each fresh breast was divided into 10 average sized pieces making a total of 150 pieces. The pieces was randomly divided into 12 groups, containing 12 pieces representing the treatments for the study. Each group was administered its treatment specification and grilled using charcoal griller until the meat is cooked. The proximate, sensory and bacteriological data were collected and analyzed using the Analysis of variance (ANOVA) in the statistical packages for social sciences (SPSS) Version 17.0 at 5% using Tukey test. Monosodium glutamate treated samples at 2% had lower microbial load (128 × 105) than all other samples. Total microbial load of chicken breast meat falls within the USDA safety limit for chicken products. The results revealed that despite chemical treatment, 36 bacteria were isolated from nine (9) genera of bacteria. According to prevalence, the bacteria include: Bacillus Cereus (22.22%), Staphylococcus aureus (19.44%), Pseudomonas auregenosa (16.67%), Streptococcus pneumonia (8.33%), Lacto bacillus (Strepto) (8.33%) Bacillus anthricia (8.33%), Wrella Shella pneumonae (5.56%), Bacillus subtilis (5.56%), Bacillus megaterium (2.78%) and Micro coccus (2.78%). The study concluded that Sodium chloride at up to 3% w/w should be used in the grilled beef industries since it ensures lower bacteriological load However, the presence of Streptococcus pneumonia is a human pathogenic bacterium and it is recognized as a major cause of pneumonia and meningitis in children and the elderly which may result to health challenges. Keywords: Chemical Additives, Bacteriological Load, Prevalence, Chicken Breast Meat