An analysis of U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) data conducted by Trace One has revealed the U.S. states with the highest levels of Salmonella and Campylobacter contamination in retail meat—with Georgia, South Carolina, and Tennessee topping the list. The report also underlined trends in prevalence and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) for four pathogens.

Trace One included FDA National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System (NARMS) data for 2019–2021 in its analysis. NARMS tests retail meats for contamination by important foodborne pathogens to monitor levels of bacterial AMR. The company looked at data for Campylobacter, Enterococcus, Escherichia coli, and Salmonella in chicken, ground turkey, ground beef, and pork chops.

The NARMS data showed that, across all meat types, 36.2 percent of retail samples tested positive for at least one of the four tested pathogens. Chicken had the highest rates of Salmonella (17.9 percent positive samples) and Campylobacter (17.1 percent positive samples). Ground turkey had the highest rate of E. coli (67.2 percent), as well as a significant proportion of Salmonella-positive samples (11.4 percent). Enterococcus—often used as an indicator of fecal contamination, and therefore, of general processing plant sanitation—had the highest overall positive rate among all four pathogens (found in more than 50 percent of samples across all meat types).

Additionally, more than one-fifth (22.8 percent) of bacteria isolated from meat samples were multidrug resistant (MDR), or resistant to thee or more antibiotic classes. Salmonella had the highest overall MDR rate at 35.5 percent, followed by E. coli (26 percent), Enterococcus (15.3 percent), and Campylobacter (13.6 percent).

Of all meat types, chicken had the highest MDR rate for Salmonella (39.1 percent) and an overall MDR rate of 26.5 percent. In ground turkey, MDR was found in 29.9 percent of Salmonella isolates and 29.4 percent of Campylobacter isolates, with an overall MDR rate for all four pathogens of 29.7 percent. In contrast, ground beef had a low overall MDR rate of 6.4 percent for all four pathogens.

To assess geographic differences in food safety, Trace One calculated a composite risk index for states that participate in NARMS. Due to state-by-state differences in sampling practices, for its comparisons, the company only considered meat-bacteria combinations that were consistently tested across all states. Specifically, for chicken and ground turkey, the index reflected the percentage of samples that tested positive for either Salmonella or Campylobacter. For pork chops and ground beef, only Salmonella positivity rates were included.

Trace One also noted a regional pattern in the states with the highest overall levels of pathogen contamination in retail meats. Southeastern neighbors Georgia, South Carolina, and Tennessee ranked first, second, and third, respectively. Georgia had a risk index (RI) of 69.05, driven by high positivity rates in chicken (29.8 percent), ground turkey (13.3 percent), and ground beef (1.4 percent). South Carolina and Tennessee followed closely, each reporting elevated contamination in poultry and pork products and moderate levels in beef. On the other hand, Louisiana had the lowest RI (21.45).

The 22 states included in the Trace One report, ranked highest to lowest in terms of retail meat contamination risk, are as follows:

1. Georgia (RI 69.05)
2. South Carolina (RI 67.85)
3. Tennessee (RI 66.65)
4. Minnesota (RI 63.10)
5. Pennsylvania (RI 58.35)
6. Missouri (RI 55.95)
7. North Carolina (54.78)
8. Ohio (RI 54.78)
9. New York (RI 54.75)
10. Texas (RI 52.38)
11. California (RI 51.18)
12. South Dakota (RI 50.00)
13. Oregon (RI 50.00)
14. Maryland (RI 47.63)
15. Kansas (RI 47.63)
16. Iowa (RI 46.43)
17. Colorado (RI 44.05)
18. Connecticut (RI 41.68)
19. New Mexico (RI 39.28)
20. Hawaii (29.78)
21. Washington (23.80)
22. Louisiana (21.45).