Rusty hooks being used to hang kangaroo carcasses. But the head of the industry association has strongly rejected this claim, saying the overall rate of breaches is low and kangaroo undergoes more extensive testing for pathogens before it is sold than other meats. Greens MP John Kaye, who obtained the information under freedom of information laws, said the potential for cross contamination in the meat meant no one could eat it without putting themselves at risk of infection. "Poor hygiene practices have potentially devastating consequences for any food but game meat is particularly vulnerable," he said. "No one should eat meat that was hung on rusty carcass hook, processed over a tray with old dried blood or exposed to other live animals with the risk of faecal and other contamination." "This so-called healthy alternative to other red meats could be riddled with pathogens."

Eighteen seized wild boar carcasses that were lacking official identification leg tags. Five years ago Fairfax Media revealed independent testing had found dangerously high levels of salmonella and E.coli in kangaroo meat bought from supermarkets. Daniel Ramp, a senior lecturer and director of the Centre for Compassionate Conservation at the University of Technology Sydney, said previously contamination levels had been found that were "way above safety standards". "Kangaroo is a game meat so it is very difficult to ensure good hygiene practices across the board," he said. "They are killed in the bush, they are gutted, driven around for a while and then put into refrigerated shipping containers until someone comes to get them, so there's a lot of potential for cross-contamination." He said high levels of salmonella and E.coli were dangerous for the very young, elderly, or people with weakened immune systems.

The compliance breaches documented by the Food Safety Authority included chillers that were contaminated with old blood, dirty floors, walls and ceilings, lack of water and appropriate soap for handwashing, rusty hooks that could cause cross-contamination, an inadequate thermometer and cattle being allowed to roam around the chiller area. But John Kelly, the executive officer of the Kangaroo Industries Association of Australia, said kangaroo meat operations faced more stringent tests than other meat producers, with processing operations testing batches when they arrived and when they left. "The product is held there and not released until the results of that test are at hand, because they are only 24-hour tests," he said. "The level of compliance is as high if not better than the level of compliance in beef, lamb or chicken." He said none of the breaches had been in the "major" category, which requires automatic shut-down, and most were required to be rectified within 24 hours or one week, and that with only 2 per cent fat kangaroo was one of the most healthy meats to eat. The Food Authority undertook 156 inspections in the year to November 2014, and 16 breaches were found.

"The inspection and audit process provides a comprehensive assessment to ensure the business is operating its food safety program and that the program covers all aspects of food safety, including identification and control of food safety hazards and information on the correct harvesting, storage and labelling of game meat," a spokeswoman said. Harvesters are inspected at least every two years, chillers are inspected annually, processors are inspected at least annually and export processors are inspected at least every six months.