Survival of Staphylococcus aureus and Salmonella Enteritidis on Salted Sardines (Sardina pilchardus) during Ripening

Abstract

The ripening period for salted sardines ranges from 4 to 6 months, depending on the season. Sometimes producing industries need to distribute the product earlier owing to market needs, and when this happens the product's safety needs to be assured. The purpose of this work was to study the survival of Staphylococcus aureus and Salmonella Enteritidis on salted sardines during a ripening period of 115 days. Salted sardines were inoculated with pure cultures of S. aureus and Salmonella Enteritidis (10(5) CFU/g of fish on day 0). After 5 days of ripening, the water activity value for the sardines decreased from 0.93 to 0.69. The survival of both pathogens and that of total viable cells were evaluated during the ripening process. Total viable counts decreased by 2 log units over the 115-day ripening period. Salmonella Enteritidis and S. aureus survived for 60 and 90 days, respectively. Therefore, the use of a 90-day ripening period could be effective in assuring the safety of the final product.

Toxigenicity and genetic diversity of Staphylococcus aureus isolated from Vietnamese ready-to-eat foods

“…The bacterium's survival rate can vary from several weeks to several months according to food type, temperature, moisture content in foods, etc. (Arkoudelos, Samaras, & Tassou, 2003;Inatsu, Bari, Kawasaki, & Isshiki, 2004;Vora, Senecal, & Schaffner, 2003). It has been demonstrated that for detectable SE production in food samples between 10 5 and 10 7 CFU/g S. aureus population is required (Doan & Davidson, 1999;Fujikawa & Morozumi, 2006).…”

Incidence and role of Salmonella in seafood safety

“…Salmonella spp can tolerate many stressful conditions and survive in low-A w foods for long periods (Arkoudelos, Samaras, & Tassou, 2003;Ristori, dos Santos Pereira, & Gelli, 2007). Long term survival of Salmonella has been shown in salted sardines at 0.69 A w for 60 days (Arkoudelos et al, 2003). Hence understanding the behavior of Salmonella in salted and/or dried products is important from a food safety standpoint.…”

“…Heinitz et al (2000) found that the incidence of Salmonella in RTE seafood samples including salted/dried fish was 2.6%. Salmonella spp can tolerate many stressful conditions and survive in low-A w foods for long periods (Arkoudelos, Samaras, & Tassou, 2003;Ristori, dos Santos Pereira, & Gelli, 2007). Long term survival of Salmonella has been shown in salted sardines at 0.69 A w for 60 days (Arkoudelos et al, 2003).…”

Survival of food‐borne bacterial pathogens in traditional Mediterranean anchovy products

“…It is generally consumed in Greece and other Mediterranean countries, usually fresh, canned, salted, or marinated. Several interventions (hurdles) are used for fish preservation, including reduced pH and water activity (a w ) (Arkoudelos, Samaras, & Tassou, ; Boziaris, Stamatiou, & Nychas, ; Gökoğlu, Cengiz, & Yerlıkaya, ). Lowering a w is one of the most widely methods used to preserve fish products.…”