Meat Contamination and Food Safety in Animal Production Systems: A Review

Abstract

The contamination of meat and food safety are also major concerns of animal production systems as meat is a highly nutritious product but also highly susceptible to both biological and chemical contamination throughout the production chain. The given review paper researches the notion of meat contamination and food safety as the primary influencing factors of meat quality and safety as well as the primary microbial and chemical hazards of meat. It also discusses the community health implications of unsafe meat, including foodborne disease, chemical contamination, and antimicrobial resistance as well as strategies used as the main control and prevention measures to reduce the risk of contamination. As the review indicates, meat safety is a matter of a large number of interrelated concerns, including animal health, the environment, hygiene in slaughter areas, processing, storage, transportation, and regulatory policies. All-in-all, the farm-to-fork solution of ensuring meat safety is a holistic concept that should include hygienic control, veterinary control, hazard check, and effective prevention control practices. These steps should be strengthened to increase the quality of meat, protect the health of the population, and provide safer modes of animal production.