Kitchen sponges are among the possible sources of contaminants in food establishments. The main purpose of the current study was, therefore, to assess the microbiological safety of sponges as it has been used in selected food establishments of Jimma town. Accordingly, the microbiological safety of a total of 201 kitchen sponges randomly collected from food establishments was evaluated against the total counts of aerobic mesophilic bacteria (AMB), Enterobacteriaceae, coliforms, and yeast and molds. The mean counts of aerobic mesophilic bacteria ranged from 7.43 to 12.44 log CFU/mm3. The isolated genera were dominated by Pseudomonas (16.9%), Bacillus (11.1%), Micrococcus (10.6%), Streptococcus (7.8%), and Lactobacillus (6%) excluding the unidentified Gram positive rods (4.9%) and Gram negative rods (9.9%). The high microbial counts (aerobic mesophilic bacteria, coliforms, Enterobacteriaceae, and yeast and molds) reveal the existence of poor kitchen sponge sanitization practice. Awareness creation training on basic hygienic practices to food handlers and periodic change of kitchen sponges are recommended.

Food-borne pathogens are the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in developing countries. Changes in eating habits, mass catering, unsafe food storage conditions and poor hygiene practices are major contributing factors to food associated illnesses. In Ethiopia, the widespread habit of readyto-eat food consumption is potential cause of food borne illnesses. The present study aimed at investigating the prevalence and antimicrobial susceptibility profile of Salmonella species from readyto-eat foods from catering establishments in Jigjiga City and determining susceptibility pattern of bacterial isolates. This study aimed to assess the ready-to-eat foods Salmonella prevalence and antimicrobial resistance pattern of the isolates. In total, various food samples were collected from 120 hotels and processed to detect Salmonella presence. The ready-to-eat food samples were collected and assessed bacteriologically for Salmonella strains. A total of 120 food samples were bacteriologically evaluated. After confirmation, 25 samples (20.8%) were positive to Salmonella. A total of 5 drug resistance patterns were detected among Salmonella isolates. Out of the 25 isolates 10 (40%) were resistant to three antibiotics, 8 (28%) of the isolates were resistant to 4 of the antibiotics tested, whereas 5 (20%) were resistant to two antibiotics, only 1 (4%) isolate was resistant to 1 antibiotic but 1 (4%) isolate was resistant to five antibiotics. The lack of public sanitary facilities can be another hurdle to keep the desirable hands hygiene of the vendors. In this study, it is reported that severity of the current scenario among the hotel worker hygiene and they are the unknowingly playing role in spread of diseases like Salmonellosis.

It is identified that through the cleanout practice of utensils, dishes, etc. in kitchens, the before washing and after washing activities are done with the use of sponges to remove food remains. These food residues along with the wetness in the sponges tender an encouraging environment for microbial proliferation. Sponges and tea towels used in cleaning equipments and utensils have been known as possible agents in the spread of microbes and it has been pragmatic that bacteria stick to these vehicles. Evaluation on the prevalence of Salmonella spp. from kitchen sponges was conducted from October, 2010 to June, 2011. The sponges used on a daily basis in food establishments were studied for the incidence of Salmonella spp. A total of 201 sponge samples from restaurants, hotels, cafeterias and pastry shops were included in the study. Antibiotic resistance patterns of Salmonella isolates were done using nine antibiotics selected on the basis of accessibility and present use in Ethiopia. The results show that 11.9% of the kitchen sponges were found to have Salmonella. Frequencies of isolation of Salmonella differed among the establishment types and it varied from 10 (restaurants) to 12.8% (cafeterias). Noteworthy, deviation in prevalence of Salmonella among restaurants, hotels, pastry shops and cafeterias (p=0.023) were statistically significant. Ampicillin and nalidixic acid were the most resisted drugs. Five drug resistance patterns were distinguished among Salmonella isolates. These results demonstrate the risk posed by the daily use of kitchen sponges in food establishments' vis-à-vis Salmonella. Awareness creation training on basic hygienic practices to personnel's working in food establishment, frequent change of sponges being used in kitchens, and monitoring of safety practices of the establishments are recommended.