Microbiological status on internal carcass surfaces of mobile slaughtered cattle in Germany

Abstract Mobile slaughter is increasingly used to improve animal welfare by reducing transport stress, but concerns remain about microbiological contamination due to delayed evisceration. This study assessed internal abdominal cavity surfaces of 58 cattle carcasses under routine mobile slaughter conditions in Germany by swabbing and analyzing total viable count (TVC) and the presence of Escherichia (E.) coli . Of 99 swabs, 46.5% exceeded the limit of quantification with a mean TVC of 2.42 log 10 CFU/100 cm 2 , while E. coli was detected in only a single non-quantifiable case. No significant correlation was identified between the bacterial load and the bleeding-to-sampling interval ( p = 0.76), which predominantly ranged up to 2 h. These results indicate that delayed evisceration within this timeframe does not increase microbiological contamination of internal carcass surfaces. The findings support the hygienic safety of mobile slaughter practices under the conditions studied and provide data to inform regulatory guidelines regarding evisceration timing.