Promotion of competitive exclusion by 'good' bacteria against Salmonella

This project aimed to determine if biocontrol of Salmonella in egg production environments using ‘good’ bacteria could be achieved hence presenting an approach which will be favourably viewed by consumers.

There are a number of isolates with potential to act as biocontrol agents that contain some antimicrobial resistance genes or potential virulence genes which may be of concern for the egg industry. Not all initially isolated organisms were further characterised for their competitive exclusion ability and these represent an accessible but untapped resource of potential biocontrol agents.

Overall the results confirm that naturally occurring microorganisms that are inhibitory to Salmonella can be readily isolated from the layer farm environment. A limited number of these demonstrate complete exclusion of Salmonella attachment to stainless steel coupons when used in pre-formed biofilms.