The rapid detection of Campylobacter spp. is of utmost importance for the reduction of infections in humans by contaminated food products. The standard culturing method (ISO 10272-1:2006) involves a high time and labour demand. In this paper, we present a method that reduces the detection time of Campylobacter spp. to or below one third as compared to the ISO method, at a reduced cost per test. We used redox potential change of enrichment cultures (Bolton broth with Bolton selective supplement) for reliably selecting Campylobacter-contaminated raw milk and broiler meat samples. Identification of Campylobacter spp. in the contaminated samples was done by real-time PCR method. Culturing time to conclusive redox monitoring varied between 6 and 24 h for positive samples, depending on the contamination rate, in contrast to 136 h with the standard culturing process. However, now the Campylobacter-negative majority of food samples will not need to be tested by real-time PCR because redox potential monitoring can identify them in the selective enrichment phase. This method could be potentially used as a faster alternative to the current standard ISO 10272-1:2006, for nonregulatory monitoring purposes.
Keywords: Campylobacter spp.; Rapid detection method; broiler meat; food safety; raw milk; redox potential.