Antibiotics are used in animal feeds as growth promoters or for disease prevention and treatment. Drugs and their metabolites accumulate into body cells and constitute the so-called drug residues. Residual antimicrobials in food are an increasing risk for human health. Antibiotic residues in meat and other foods are suspected to be responsible for drug allergies and emergence of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria. In Madagascar, bacterial resistance against several antibiotics has been regularly observed in pathogens isolated from humans and pigs. Suspicion of drug misuse in farms has been frequently recorded by animal health professionals but no guidelines are available on the good usage of antibiotics in livestock. Since scarce information is available on antimicrobial residues in ani¬mal products in Madagascar, this study aimed at determining the prevalence of pork meat contaminated by such residues and sold in Antananarivo markets. A total of 967 meat samples (diaphragm muscle) were collected during 2010 and 2011 in the four main abattoirs of Antananarivo, and in three additional regional abattoirs, i.e. Antsirabe, Mahitsy (Central Madagascar) and Tsiroamandidy (Western Madagascar). Analysis for antimicrobial detection in meat was performed with the commercial Premi®-test kit (DSM, Urmond, Netherlands) at the National Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory in Antananarivo. Premi®-test is a broad spectrum microbial screening test for the detection of antibiotic and sulfonamide residues in meat or meat products at, or below maximum residue limit (MRL) levels. MRL is the maximum concentration of residues following administration of a veterinary medicine which is legally permit¬ted or acceptable in food under European Union legislation. The Premi®-test kit contains a standardized number of spores of Bacillus stearothermophilus, very sensitive to many antibiotics and sulfa compounds, in agar medium with selected nutrients together with an indicator. Premi®-test is based on t