Wild Game Meat—a Microbiological Safety and Hygiene Challenge?

Improving Hunted Wild Boar Carcass Hygiene: Roles of Different Factors Involved in the Harvest Phase

“…Nonetheless, some gaps can be found in the hygienic production of such game meat, for which the harvest process is generally conducted in a wild environment, not always ideal for meat production. In such an environment, the animals can be more easily contaminated during hunting and related practices, or the time or conditions to process them quickly and properly varies [ 14 ]. Furthermore, the production chain is peculiar and organized in different steps that involve the responsibility of different individuals who must guarantee meat safety and optimal hygienic quality [ 15 ].…”

“…In fact, parts of the production chain are under hunters’ control, while others are managed by the owners of collection centers (usually hunters) and/or game-handling establishments, and only this final step is under official control by veterinarian officers and follows the same rules of “farmed” meat chain production. This peculiar chain must be properly set up in the harvest phase to avoid the possibility that a gap in the correct implementation of hygienic procedures in one step could lead to an increased health risk for consumers or reduce the shelf life of the product due to relevant bacterial growth [ 14 ].…”

“…Different authors have reported the hygienic characteristics of wild boar meat [ 14 , 16 , 17 , 18 ]; however, a multifactorial evaluation of the combined effects of harvest factors on the main microbiological criteria adopted for process hygiene and meat safety has been rarely reported [ 19 , 20 ].…”

Effect of Delayed Refrigeration on the Microbial Carcass Contamination of Wild Boars (Sus scrofa)

“…Once bled, eviscerated and cooled, the carcass must be sent to a point where it can be sectioned or kept refrigerated for maturation. The precautions to be observed during this phase are few and simple but essential: protect the meat and start the cooling process [9]. After preparing the animal (bleeding, evisceration and cooling), it may be necessary to face a period of transport that is sometimes long and not very easy; while small animals can be easily transported in a backpack, larger ones must necessarily be carried by several people or sometimes dragged to the vehicle capable of transporting them.…”

“…After preparing the animal (bleeding, evisceration and cooling), it may be necessary to face a period of transport that is sometimes long and not very easy; while small animals can be easily transported in a backpack, larger ones must necessarily be carried by several people or sometimes dragged to the vehicle capable of transporting them. It is obvious that a wild boar opened from the jaws to the pelvis and dragged for hundreds of meters will tend to be contaminated with blades of grass and, sometimes, earth; however, these contaminations are to be considered secondary in the preservation of the meat, compared to the contamination by the intestinal contents, and can be easily eliminated with a simple washing on arrival at home [9]. The practice of not opening the thorax of a prey before arriving home (the abdomen is still opened due to weight problems during transport) is instead absolutely wrong, as it hinders the cooling of the meat and can favor the exit of liquids from the esophagus, liquids capable of contaminating the meat due to their bacterial components.…”