Microbiological quality of frozen raw and undercooked Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) fillets and food safety practices of fish handlers in Arba Minch town, SNNPR, Ethiopia

Abstract

The study was designed to assess the microbiological quality of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) fillets and food safety practices of fish handlers in Arba Minch town, SNNPR, Ethiopia. A questionnaire survey was conducted to assess the food safety practices of fish handlers. The microbiological quality of frozen raw and undercooked (Asa leb-leb) tilapia fillets was assessed by determining the total plate count and isolating hygiene indicator bacteria that is, Escherichia coli and other major foodborne pathogens that is, Salmonella spp. and Staphylococcus aureus. Among interviewed fish handlers, 32.6% and 55.8% were not found to use overcoat and hair cover, respectively. Moreover, 30.2% of the fish handlers didn't take training regarding sanitary handling of fish food. The highest mean bacterial count was observed in frozen raw tilapia fillet sample (4.63x106 cfu/g), which was significantly (p=0.037) different from undercooked tilapia fillet (4.92x103 cfu/g). From 40 frozen raw samples of tilapia fillet examined, 42.5% had E. coli, 7.5% had Salmonella spp. and 65% had S. aureus. In contrast, from 40 undercooked samples of tilapia fillet examined, 7.5% had E. coli and 17.5% had S. aureus whilst Salmonella spp. was not detected. A significant (p=0.000) difference in frequency of bacterial isolates were also observed between frozen raw and undercooked tilapia fillet. Generally, the study revealed that there was a gap on food safety practices and high microbial profile were observed. Hence, it could be wise to advice the government to improve the food safety practices and quality standards of fish sold in the town.

Levels of Escherichia coli as Bio-Indicator of Contamination of Fish Food and Antibiotic Resistance Pattern Along the Value Chain in Northwest Ethiopia

“…This may be due to the negative effect of heat on the bacteria during fish origin food preparation. This was in agreement with the result of Wendwesen et al, 36 who reported 4.63×10 6 cfu/g Escherichia coli count in frozen raw Nile tilapia fish samples and a 4.92×10 3 cfu/g Escherichia coli load in asa lebleb (local name) fish origin foods in Arba Minch town, SNNPR, Ethiopia. The Escherichia coli load in raw fish sample was higher than the result of Dhanapal et al, 40 who found 4.9×10 4 cfu/g and lower than the result of Wendwesen et al, 36 who reported 4.63×10 6 cfu/g in frozen raw Nile tilapia fillet samples.…”

“…This was in agreement with the result of Wendwesen et al, 36 who reported 4.63×10 6 cfu/g Escherichia coli count in frozen raw Nile tilapia fish samples and a 4.92×10 3 cfu/g Escherichia coli load in asa lebleb (local name) fish origin foods in Arba Minch town, SNNPR, Ethiopia. The Escherichia coli load in raw fish sample was higher than the result of Dhanapal et al, 40 who found 4.9×10 4 cfu/g and lower than the result of Wendwesen et al, 36 who reported 4.63×10 6 cfu/g in frozen raw Nile tilapia fillet samples. This high load in our study might be due to the result of poor handling during the transportation, and/or poor personal hygiene during harvesting and filleting.…”

“…Okonko et al 37 suggests that improper handling and improper hygiene might lead to the contamination of ready-to-eat foods and this might eventually affect the health of the consumers. The result of this study was higher than the result of Wendwesen et al, 36 who reported that 7.5% of Nile tilapia fish (locally called asa lebleb ) samples had Escherichia coli from ready-to-eat fish foods in Arba Minch town, SNNPR, Ethiopia and lower than the result of Ohalete et al, 38 who reported that 58.3% of fried fish had Escherichia coli in Owerri, Nigeria.…”

“…33,34 The findings of this study indicated that 23.5% of raw fish samples carried Escherichia coli isolates. This result was higher than the result of Vieira et al, 35 who reported that 12.5% of all samples from Brazilian markets had Escherichia coli, and lower than the result of Wendwesen et al, 36 who reported that 42.5% of raw frozen Nile tilapia fish samples had Escherichia coli in Arba Minch town, SNNPR, Ethiopia.…”

Hygienic assessment of fish handling practices along production and supply chain and its public health implications in Central Oromia, Ethiopia

“…The prevalence of these pathogens in fish varies considerably in different lakes across the country. For instance, Salmonella was reported at prevalence of 5.2% from Hayike 33 , 7.5% from Abaya and Chamo 34 and 30% from Tinike lakes 35 . Similarly, 1.5% 36 and 2.3% 37 prevalence of Shiga toxin producing E. coli O157:H7 were reported from fish samples tested at lake Hayike and Tekeze dam, and lake Hawassa, respectively.…”