PurposeThe primary objective was to determine the prevalence of indicator microorganisms [Staphylococcus aureus, non-S. aureus staphylococci (NSAS), coliforms and aerobic bacteria] for contamination of chicken carcasses, carcass drip and rinse water from the informal chicken market in Gauteng, South Africa.Design/methodology/approachChicken swabs, chicken drips and rinse waters were collected from 151 chickens from 47 random outlets. Pre-tested questionnaires were administered to capture the risk factors for bacterial contamination. Standard microbiological procedures were conducted for isolation and enumeration of target bacteria.FindingsNSAS (64% and 41%) and S. aureus (12% and 31%) were prevalent on carcasses and in carcass drip respectively. Coliforms (62%) and aerobic bacteria (85%) were detected in rinse water. Significant risk factors for contamination of carcasses with NSAS, S. aureus and coliform organisms were: evisceration of chickens on the same location used for sale, cleaning of display counter with dirty clothes/wipes, holding of differently sourced chickens in the same cage prior to slaughter, not cleaning the display table/counter and hands at all, washing knives in rinse water, high turnover of daily slaughter and length of time to display chickens.Research limitations/implicationsThe limitations of this research were the limited geographical coverage and small sample size.Practical implicationsThe isolation of these indicator microorganisms suggests the potential presence of other chicken-borne pathogens not tested for in the study.Social implicationsThe findings serve to inform policy on public health and street-vended food and can guide control on good sanitary practices.Originality/valueThis is the first comprehensive report on ready to eat chickens from the informal markets in Gauteng, South Africa.

The study was conducted to characterize Staphylococcus aureus strains from swabs and drips of dressed chicken carcasses sold at outlets in six townships in the informal market in Gauteng province, South Africa, using molecular and phenotypic methods. Seven genes (6 toxins and 1 antimicrobial resistance) comprising staphylococcal enterotoxin A (SEA), B (SEB), C (SEC), D (SED), exfoliative toxin A, toxic shock syndrome toxin, and MecA encoding methicillin resistance were assayed using polymerase chain reaction. The resistance of the S. aureus strains to 18 antimicrobial agents was determined using the disk diffusion method. The frequency of detection of the six toxin genes was sea (52.2%), followed by seb (10.9%), sec (6.5%), sed (2.2%), eta (93.5%), and tst (19.6%). The mecA gene was detected in 4.3% of the isolates. The predominant profiles of toxin genes detected were sea‐eta (37.0%). All 63 isolates of S. aureus were resistant to one or more antimicrobial agents. The frequency of resistance was high to spectinomycin (98.4%), nalidixic acid (85.7%), and penicillin (84.1%), but low to gentamycin (1.6%) and cefotaxime (1.6%). The high frequency of toxin genes and antimicrobial resistance gene observed in S. aureus isolates from chicken could pose a challenge to food safety and may have therapeutic and zoonotic implications.

The occurrence, concentrations and variables associated with tetracycline, polyether ionophore and anthelmintic residues in the livers of chickens sold in the informal market in South Africa were determined. An ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) was used to simultaneously analyze for four tetracyclines, five polyether ionophores and six anthelmintic residues. The study determined the presence  of residues  in liver samples at both the limit of quantifications (LoQ) and concentrations over the maximum residue limit (MRLs), i.e. non-compliant. Doxycycline (tetracycline group) was detected in 24.5% (24/98) of chicken livers and 15.3% (15/98) were non-compliant. The mean±SD concentration of 919.04±1081.30 (LoQ) and 1410.57±108.89 ppb (MRL) were obtained. Maduramycin was detected in 27.6% (27/98) of chicken livers and 19.4% (19/98) were non-compliant. The mean±SD for LoQ was 117.96±84.56 and MRL was 153.21±76.29 ppb. The concentrations of residues of doxycycline and maduramycin in chicken livers varied significantly across townships. Lasalocid was quantified in 31.6% (31/98) of the samples, of which 5.1% (5/98) contained concentrations above the MRL. The  mean±SD concentrations of Lasalocid was 62.90±170.84 for samples in which  Lasalocid was quantified and 310.16±356.68 ppb for non-compliant samples. The frequencies of chicken livers that contained detectable concentrations of the three anthelmintic residues were 3.1% (3/98), 1.0% (1/48) and 2.0% (2/98) for praziquantel, closantel and rafoxanide, respectively. The presence of three classes of veterinary drugs residues in chicken liver poses food safety implications to consumers and indicates a need for enhanced regulatory enforcement in controlling these drugs in South Africa.