removal technique. method and secondary tissue using the moist-swab contact counts on beef carcasses by Comparison of microbial

4.5/6.45 cm2. Secondarytreatment ofthe removedsurface tissue byblendingresulted in asignificantlygreater numberofbacteria being recovered than whenthe same sample wasswabbedand/orrinsed. Dataindicatethatblendingofthecarcasssurfacetissueprovides amorerepresentative value ofthe true microbial flora.Varioussamplingmethodsareusedindeter-miningtherelativenumbersofbacteriaonhet-erogenous and/or uneven surfaces. For exam-ple, poultry researchers (3, 4) rinse or spraywhole carcasses with diluent, which is thenusedfortotal anddifferential microbialcounts.Contactsurfaceplatesareusedtoevaluatetheeffectiveness ofsanitizing agents, whereastheaerospaceindustryutilizes ultrasonicvibration