Evaluation of microbiological safety and mycotoxin contamination of household produced meat products originating from Croatian indigenous pig breeds

This study aimed to assess the microbiological safety and mycotoxin contamination of traditional meat products made from Croatian indigenous pig breeds, produced in family households under uncontrolled conditions. Different factors, including natural, seasonal, and uncontrolled production conditions, pose challenges in maintaining consistent product microbiological and mycotoxin contamination. No bacteria from the genera Salmonella or Clostridium, or the species Staphylococcus aureus, were detected in any of the investigated samples. However, Listeria monocytogenes was found in a cured sausage sample from Black Slavonian pigs, rendering it unsafe for consumption. Additionally, Listeria innocua was identified in a dried sausage sample from Turopolje pigs. Yeast and mould contamination levels ranged as follows: cured sausages: 10² – 1.4 × 10⁴ cfu/g; whole ham: 1.4 × 10² – 2.7 × 10⁴ cfu/g; bacon: 2.6 × 10² – 3.5 × 10³ cfu/g. The dominant mould genus colonising the dry meat products was Penicillium (30 isolates), followed by Aspergillus (20 isolates), with Cladosporium and Mucor species present in lower numbers. The most frequently isolated Penicillium species were P. brevicompactum, P. commune, and P. solitum (85.7%), while the most common Aspergillus species were A. proliferans and A. tubingensis (57.1%). Regarding product type, bacon and ham met the respective safety standards, but sausages were contaminated with L. monocytogenes and L. innocua, making them unsafe for consumption. All products were safe in terms of mycotoxin contamination.