A total of 285 samples of meat and meat products were evaluated for the presence of bacteriocin-producing lactic acid bacteria by the "sandwich" test. From 174 of these samples, 813 strains of lactic acid bacteria were isolated. They were able to inhibit the growth of Staphylococcus aureus CTC 33 and/or Listeria innocua Lin 11. When evaluated by the well-diffusion assay, 128 of these strains inhibited the growth of the indicator strains. The inhibitory spectra of activity of the isolates were evaluated against a range of Gram-positive and Gramnegative test organisms. S. aureus was the most sensitive indicator tested, whereas Enterococcus faecalis and Lactobacillus plantarum were the most resistant ones. All the compounds produced by the lactic acid bacteria were fully or partially inactivated by some of the proteolytic enzymes, which indicates their proteinaceous nature. The antimicrobial activity of the bacteriocins produced by the lactic acid bacteria isolated in this work could act as a potential barrier to inhibit the growth of spoilage bacteria and foodborne pathogens.