Microbiological safety of pastrami: A traditional meat product

Pastrami is a traditional and popular meat product which is produced from whole muscle obtained from beef carcasses. Consumers prefer pastrami produced by small scale firms or local butchers, as a result of common estimation about homemade products are healthier and more nutritive than processed pastrami. In this study, it was aimed to investigate the microbiological quality of pastrami samples traditionally produced in Tokat with unstandardized methods and to evaluate the results in the context of food safety. All the samples were analyzed for total mesophilic aerobic bacteria, lactic acid bacteria, coagulase-positive staphylococci, sulphite-reducing bacteria, yeasts and molds, Escherichia coli, Salmonella spp. and Listeria monocytogenes. Titratable acidity, pH and water activity values were determined to evaluate the microbiological test results. The results of microbiological analyses were higher than the limits in the legislation and the samples were not microbiologically safe for consuming. Unstandardized and uncontrolled process conditions are the main reasons for the microbiological risks. When the increasing consumer demand for traditional foods is considered, the safety of the traditional product, should be the primary and plenary parameter and it could be managed with standardized production methods and appropriate sanitation conditions.