A survey of ethnic foods for microbial quality and content aflatoxin

Abstract

A range of ethnic foods was examined for their microbiological content in relation to total viable counts (TVC) of aerobic bacteria, counts of presumptive coliforms, yeast and mould counts; presence of Salmonella spp., Listeria monocytogenes, Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Campylobacter spp.; total enumeration of Clostridium perfringens, Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus spp.; identification of moulds and the presence of total aflatoxins. Samples, which included cereals, nuts, dried fruits, herbs and spices, were obtained from local retail outlets and distributors. It was established that three samples of pistachio nuts contained significant levels of aflatoxins. The concentration of total aflatoxins in these three nut samples ranged from 15 to 259 microg/kg of sample. Only two other samples contained trace amounts of aflatoxins, all other samples analysed were found to be free of any detectable level of aflatoxins. TVCs, coliform counts and yeast and mould counts varied widely depending on the matrix tested. Generally, rice, wheat and peanuts produced low counts whereas other nuts, gram flour and spices produced much higher counts. Cl. perfringens, Staph. aureus, and Bacillus spp. were common in spices, nuts and gram flour, however, Listeria monocytogenes was only detected in four samples and in no sample could Salmonella spp, E. coli O157:H7 or Campylobacter spp. be detected.

Estado de frescor e qualidade higiênica do pescado vendido numa cidade do interior de Portugal

“…Dessas, uma apresentava o mesmo tipo de contaminação na superfície (1cm 2 ). Verificou-se, quando da aquisição das amostras, que o funcionário do estabelecimento não cumpria algumas das regras desejáveis de manipulação de alimentos, o que se enquadra na idéia genericamente aceita de que a presença desse microrganismo nos alimentos está, muitas vezes, relacionada com deficientes operações de manipulação (Inghan et al, 2000;Candlish et al, 2001).…”

Control of Toxigenic Fungi and Mycotoxins with Phytochemicals: Potentials and Challenges

“…Field and storage fungal contaminants of grains in Nigeria had previously been reported by Makun et al, (2007) and in rice in India by Reddy et al, (2004 (Candlish et al, 2001;Rasooli and Abyaneh, 2004).…”

Bacteria Contaminants and their Antibiotic Sensitivity from Selected Herbal Medicinal Products from Eldoret and Mombasa, Kenya

“…Studies have reported contamination of herbal products with disease causing organisms such as Bacillus sp., Enterobacteriaceae, Salmonella sp., Staphylococcus aureus (Govender et al, 2006). Additionally, elevated levels of coliforms and soil born bacteria contaminants have been observed in herbal drugs and spices (Candlish et al, 2001). The other challenge is the presence of "adulterants" which in actual sense mean intentional or unintentional presence of undeclared ingredients.…”

“…Medicinal herbs have been reported to be contaminated with microorganisms indigenous to the soil and plants where they are grown (Okunlola et al, 2007;Govender et al, 2006;Czech et al, 2001). Poor conditions during harvesting and post-harvest handling of the herbs and herbal products also predispose them to contamination (Farkas, 2000;Candlish et al, 2001). Studies have reported contamination of herbal products with disease causing organisms such as Bacillus sp., Enterobacteriaceae, Salmonella sp., Staphylococcus aureus (Govender et al, 2006).…”