São Paulo – Brazilian researcher Fabiana Barreiro was awarded in Dubai, in United Arab Emirates, for her research on the effect of disinfectants on the gastrointestinal tract of chickens in the pre-slaughter period. The award, in which she won first and second place, was the Eighth Dubai International Food Safety Conference and Exhibition, from November 16th to 19th.
Barreiro is a vet and doctoral student at the University of the State of São Paulo (Unesp). Her research, The addition of disinfectants approved for use in the food industry in the pre-slaughter water diet period in broiler chickens and its operation on microorganisms indicative of faecal and morphological contamination by the gastrointestinal tract, was developed under sponsorship of professor Luiz Augusto do Amaral and co-sponsorship by professor Silvana Artoni, with a funding granted by the State of São Paulo Research Foundation (Fapesp).
She explains that in the pre-slaughter fasting period, feed is removed from the poultry to reduce the probability of rupture of the entrails and contamination from the poultry’s gastrointestinal tract. “Pathogenic microorganisms may cause diseases in the people consuming the poultry in case the entrails rupture, as the faecal content may have contact with the carcass,” explained Barreiro.
Disinfectant used in the water consumed by animals may help reduce the risk of contamination of the meat. Thus, the veterinary research was aimed at analysing whether these products continue generating a result in the poultry’s gastrointestinal tract after ingestion.
After completing the trials in Brazil, Barreiro heard about the event in Dubai and decided to enrol. She travelled to the Emirates in the company of Artoni. There, they exhibited five posters showing different parts of the research. Two of them were awarded.
Work Action of Preslaughter Feed Withdrawal on Enterococci Population From Broiler Crops won first place in the poster competition. The second place was also by the Brazilian, with work Effect of Iodine Supplied Through Drinking Water on Broiler Crop Disinfection. Artoni received the award for the second position, as he was responsible for the presentation at the event.
Barreiro explains that her works were in an area of the exhibition and that people walked by, read them and made questions. “Some of the people were evaluators, but we did not know who they were,” she said. She adds that she only learnt that her works had been awarded at the moment of the announcement at the closing of the event.
The conference included participation and sponsorship of large companies, like Unilever, Nestlé, McDonald’s, Coca Cola and Pepsi. Thus, Barreiro believes that the works presented may have good repercussion.
“As it is an event that joins the business and scientific areas, I contacted the entire productive chain. Thus, the chance of information being used and disclosed is greater,” she evaluated.
*Translated by Mark Ament
