Bone‐taint in beef.—II. Bacteria in ischiatic lymph nodes

In a survey of the bacteria in ischiatic lymph nodes taken from freshly‐killed cattle, a number of types of both Gram‐positive and Gram‐negative organisms were isolated. The average number of aerobic bacteria per lymph node appears to be related to the mean rainfall for the two months preceding slaughter. Two outbreaks of bone‐taint involving six sides of beef were studied. Potential taint‐producing bacteria isolated from the tainted meat included bacilli, coliforms, pseudomonads and clostridia. In the second outbreak the spoilage was mainly due to anaerobes. The bacterial flora of lymph nodes and tainted meat were found to have much in common. This is considered to be further evidence for the view that the infection which causes bonetaint may be present in the lymph nodes during life, and spread to the surrounding tissues after death.