Prevention of disease transmission and enhancement of growth and feed efficiency are critical factors in modern animal production (Mroz, 2005). When pathogenic bacteria contaminate feed, it becomes a potential route of transmission of disease to animal and human populations, and is consequently of great concern to producers and consumers (Crump et al., 2002; WHO, 2006). Food-producing animals (e.g. cattle, chickens, pigs, and turkeys) are the main reservoirs for many of these microorganisms, which include non-Typhi serotypes of Salmonella enterica, Campylobacter species, Shiga toxin producing strains of Escherichia coli, and Yersenia enterocolitica (Mead et al., 1999). The microflora found in feed materials comes from a variety of ecological niches e.g. soil and the animals' gastrointestinal (GI) tract. The GI tract pathogens can be introduced into food chain by animals defecating in the farm environment or by fertilisation of crops with manures (Maciorowski et al., 2007), consequentially making feed a carrier for animal and human pathogens.

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