Risks associated with the discharge of poultry slaughterhouse waste in public landfill sites in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire.

Abstract

Introduction: The poultry sector in Côte d`Ivoire is expanding and generating huge quantities of waste. This study aimed to analyze the risks associated with the discharge of poultry slaughterhouse waste in public landfill sites in Abidjan.

Methodology: The chemical and microbiological analysis of 30 poultry slaughter waste samples from 10 Abidjan communities were evaluated using high performance liquid chromatography and detection of pathogenic bacteria on specific media, respectively. The antibiotic susceptibility of isolates was determined using the agar diffusion method.

Results: A total of 4 antibiotic molecules - sulfamethoxazole, oxytetracyclin, ciprofloxacin, and erythromycin - were detected in analyzed samples with levels ranging from 1500 ± 22 to 16200 ± 129 µg/kg. Moreover, 270 bacterial strains including 71 Salmonella, 109 Escherichia. coli, and 90 Staphylococcus aureus were isolated. Among E. coli isolates, 16.5% and 19.3% were identified as enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC) and enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) respectively. Among the Salmonella strains, 45% were positive for the virulence gene inva. The levels of antibiotic resistance were between 12 and 67%, with high level of resistance observed for imipenem in E. coli, and for amoxicillin/clavulanic and ampicillin in Salmonella strains. The highest rates of resistance in S. aureus were for fluoroquinolones (23.0-45.0%), fusidic acid (42.2%), and sulphonamides (77.8%). Moreover, multidrug resistance to 3, 4, and 5 antibiotic families was detected in 14.8%, 10%, and 2.2% of the 270 tested strains, respectively.

Conclusions: These results indicate the necessity of managing this waste to reduce its negative effect on the environment and public health.