Longitudinal Study of the Distribution of Antimicrobial-Resistant Campylobacter Isolates from an Integrated Broiler Chicken Operation

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Investigation of Campylobacter prevalence throughout the entire chicken production process from farms to retail meat is still limited. In this study, we examined the prevalence and antimicrobial susceptibility of Campylobacter in 10 production lines from one of the largest integrated poultry production companies in Korea. The prevalence of Campylobacter in breeder farm, hatchery, broiler farm, slaughterhouse, and retail meat products was 50.0%, 0%, 3.3%, 13.4%, and 68.4%, respectively. Resistance to fluoroquinolones was the most frequently observed, and 16 isolates from breeder farm were resistant to both azithromycin and ciprofloxacin. Diverse pulsed-field gel electrophoresis genotypes were presented with discontinuous patterns along the whole production chain. Thirty percent of Campylobacter-free flocks became positive after slaughtering. An identical genotype was simultaneously detected from both breeder farm and retail meat, even from different production lines. This study reveals that antimicrobial-resistant Campylobacter contamination can occur at all stages of the chicken supply chain. In particular, the breeder farm and slaughterhouse should be the main control points, as they are the potential stages at which antimicrobial-resistant Campylobacter could spread to retail meat products by horizontal transmission. ABSTRACT: The aim of this study was to analyze the prevalence, antimicrobial resistance, and genetic diversity of Campylobacter isolates that were obtained from whole chicken production stages in Korea. A total of 1348 samples were collected from 10 production lines. The prevalence of Campylobacter in breeder farm, broiler farm, slaughterhouse, and retail meat products was 50.0%, 3.3%, 13.4%, and 68.4%, respectively, and Campylobacter was not detected at the hatchery stage. Resistance to quinolones/fluoroquinolones was the most prevalent at all stages. Among the multidrug-resistant isolates, 16 isolates (19.8%) from breeder farm were resistant to both azithromycin and ciprofloxacin. A total of 182 isolates were subdivided into 82 pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) genotypes with 100% similarity. Diverse genotypes were presented with discontinuous patterns along the whole production chain. Thirty percent of Campylobacter-free flocks became positive after slaughtering. An identical genotype was simultaneously detected from both breeder farm and retail meat, even from different production lines. This study reveals that antimicrobial-resistant Campylobacter contamination can occur at all stages of the chicken supply chain. In particular, the breeder farm and slaughterhouse should be the main control points, as they are the potential stages at which antimicrobial-resistant Campylobacter could spread to retail meat products by horizontal transmission.