The aims were: 1) to assess the level of contamination of MRSA in foods analyzed for the detection of S. aureus according to national official control programs and regional monitoring activities; and 2) to evaluate the occurrence of MRSA strains in wild species collected by the National Reference Center for Wild Animal Diseases (Ce.R.M.A.S.); and 3) to characterize MRSA isolates by using staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec typing, spa typing, PVL encoding gene detection, and antimicrobial susceptibility testing