Effects of financial incentives and cessation of thinning on prevalence of <i>Campylobacter</i> : a longitudinal monitoring study on commercial broiler farms in the UK

<i>Campylobacter</i> is the leading cause of food poisoning in the UK. 2 Sisters Food Group, with retail partners, monitored the effect that: (1) awarding financial incentives to farmers and stockpersons for producing houses that were not highly contaminated with <i>Campylobacter</i>, or (2) the cessation of thinning (where ~30 per cent of birds are removed and processed at around day 35 of the crop cycle), had on prevalence of <i>Campylobacter</i> on UK broiler farms in a longitudinal monitoring study. Ninety-four farms and 759 houses were monitored from November 2013 to October 2015, with and without interventions. Financial incentives and thinning were significantly associated with <i>Campylobacter</i> prevalence. Houses on farms receiving an incentive had a 54 per cent reduction in odds of being highly contaminated with <i>Campylobacter</i> Houses that were thinned had a 309 per cent increase in odds of being highly contaminated. Temperature and bird age were significantly positively associated with <i>Campylobacter</i> Changes in industry practice at supply chain level can support <i>Campylobacter</i> control plans in commercial broiler flocks. Elucidating farm-level factors associated with <i>Campylobacter</i> prevalence (such as house type, condition, flock size) as well as individual factors related to thinning (stocking density, weight profile and associated economic consequences) require further investigation.