scholarly journals Microbiological quality of raw drinking milk and unpasteurised dairy products: results from England 2013–2019

2020 ◽  
Vol 148 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. McLauchlin ◽  
H. Aird ◽  
A. Elliott ◽  
E. Forester ◽  
F. Jørgensen ◽  
...  

Abstract The aim of this study was to review microbiology results from testing >2500 raw drinking milk and dairy products made with unpasteurised milk examined in England between 2013 and 2019. Samples were collected as part of incidents of contamination, investigation of infections or as part of routine monitoring and were tested using standard methods for a range of both pathogens and hygiene indicators. Results from testing samples of raw cow's milk or cheese made from unpasteurised milk for routine monitoring purposes were overall of better microbiological quality than those collected during incident or investigations of infections. Results from routine monitoring were satisfactory for 62% of milks, 82% of cream, 100% of ice-cream, 51% of butter, 63% of kefir and 79% of cheeses, with 5% of all samples being considered potentially hazardous. Analysis of data from cheese demonstrated a significant association between increasing levels of indicator Escherichia coli with elevated levels of coagulase positive staphylococci and decreased probability of isolation of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli. These data highlight the public health risk associated with these products and provide further justification for controls applied to raw drinking milk and dairy products made with unpasteurised milk.

2020 ◽  
Vol 76 (09) ◽  
pp. 6444-2020
Author(s):  
JOLANTA KRÓL ◽  
ANETA KARASIŃSKA ◽  
ANETA BRODZIAK ◽  
MAGDALENA STOBIECKA ◽  
JOANNA BARŁOWSKA

The aim of the study was to assess changes in qualitative characteristics of selected dairy products that occur during their shelf life. The research covered 2% pasteurized drinking milk, 18% cream and semi-fat tvarog produced in 3 regional processing plants (A, B and C) and purchased in the local retail network. A total of 186 samples were taken, including 20 samples of each of the above products from plants A and B, and 22 samples of these products from plant C. The following parameters were determined: chemical composition, density, potential acidity (°SH), freezing point, and the number of Enterobacteriaceae in drinking milk; as well as the content of fat, protein and dry matter, potential acidity (°SH), and the number of β-glucuronidasepositive Escherichia coli in cream and tvarogs. The research showed that the dairy products available in the retail network generally met the requirements of Polish standards. Deviations from the standards were found in the fat content of drinking milk and cream compared to that declared by the manufacturer. On both measurement dates, the acidity of the products did not exceed the prescribed limits, which indicates that the quality of the products was maintained during the storage period. The assessment of microbiological quality showed that on both dates the limit of E. coli contamination was exceeded in tvarog samples from dairy C, which indicates an unsatisfactory microbiological quality of the production process in this plant and the need to take corrective actions in the field of production hygiene. Drinking milk and cream, on the other hand, met the legal requirements in terms of process hygiene.


2009 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marta Sofia Valente ◽  
Paulo Pedro ◽  
M. Carmen Alonso ◽  
Juan J. Borrego ◽  
Lídia Dionísio

Monitoring the microbiological quality of water used for recreational activities is very important to human public health. Although the sanitary quality of recreational marine waters could be evaluated by standard methods, they are time-consuming and need confirmation. For these reasons, faster and more sensitive methods, such as the defined substrate-based technology, have been developed. In the present work, we have compared the standard method of membrane filtration using Tergitol-TTC agar for total coliforms and Escherichia coli, and Slanetz and Bartley agar for enterococci, and the IDEXX defined substrate technology for these faecal pollution indicators to determine the microbiological quality of natural recreational waters. ISO 17994:2004 standard was used to compare these methods. The IDEXX for total coliforms and E. coli, Colilert®, showed higher values than those obtained by the standard method. Enterolert® test, for the enumeration of enterococci, showed lower values when compared with the standard method. It may be concluded that more studies to evaluate the precision and accuracy of the rapid tests are required in order to apply them for routine monitoring of marine and freshwater recreational bathing areas. The main advantages of these methods are that they are more specific, feasible and simpler than the standard methodology.


2016 ◽  
Vol 79 (5) ◽  
pp. 781-788 ◽  
Author(s):  
JIM McLAUCHLIN ◽  
HEATHER AIRD ◽  
ANDRE CHARLETT ◽  
NICOLA ELVISS ◽  
ANDREW FOX ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Outbreaks of foodborne illness caused by Bacillus cereus and Listeria monocytogenes in England associated with meat pie consumption were detected in 2012. To obtain baseline data for pies unrelated to outbreaks, 862 samples of ready-to-eat meat pies were collected at retail or from catering facilities in England in 2013 and examined to enumerate food-poisoning bacteria and indicator organisms using Organization for Standardization (ISO) methods for Listeria spp. including L. monocytogenes (ISO 11290), Clostridium perfringens (ISO 21528), coagulase-positive staphylococci including Staphylococcus aureus (ISO 6888), Bacillus spp. including B. cereus (ISO 1737), Escherichia coli (ISO 16649), Enterobacteriaceae (ISO 21528), and aerobic colony counts (ACCs; ISO 4833). Microbiological quality was satisfactory in 94% of samples, borderline in 5%, and unsatisfactory in 1%. The proportion of pies from markets that were borderline or unsatisfactory significantly increased, and the proportion of borderline or unsatisfactory pies from supermarkets significantly decreased. Among the refrigerated (0 to 15°C) pies, microbiological quality significantly decreased in pies stored at >8°C and further significantly decreased at in pies stored at ambient temperature (>15 to 25°C). Samples collected at 25 to 40°C had the highest proportion of borderline or unsatisfactory results, but results improved in pies stored at >40°C. The most common cause for borderline or unsatisfactory results was elevated ACCs (5% of all samples). Within the individual microbiological parameters, borderline or unsatisfactory results resulted from elevated Enterobacteriaceae or Bacillus levels (10 samples for each), C. perfringens levels (2 samples), and S. aureus or E. coli levels (1 sample each). L. monocytogenes was recovered from one pie at <10 CFU/g. A literature review revealed a range of microbiological hazards responsible for food poisoning and meat pie consumption, and surveillance data from 1992 to 2012 from England indicated that C. perfringens was the most commonly reported cause of outbreaks of foodborne illness.


2006 ◽  
Vol 69 (5) ◽  
pp. 1113-1117 ◽  
Author(s):  
DAVID PHILLIPS ◽  
DAVID JORDAN ◽  
STEPHEN MORRIS ◽  
IAN JENSON ◽  
JOHN SUMNER

The third national baseline microbiological survey of Australian beef carcasses and frozen boneless beef was conducted in 2004. Carcasses (n = 1,155) sampled at 27 slaughter establishments had a mean aerobic plate count (at 25°C) of 1.3 log CFU/cm2. Escherichia coli was isolated from 8.0% of the carcasses, with a mean count of −0.8 log CFU/cm2 for positive samples. On samples from 24 boning (fabrication) plants (n = 1,082), the mean aerobic plate count for frozen boneless beef was 1.3 log CFU/g, and the mean count for the 1.8% of samples with detectable E. coli was 1.5 log CFU/g. E. coli O157: H7 was isolated from 1 of 1,143 carcasses and from 0 of 1,082 boneless samples. Salmonella was isolated from 0 of 1,155 carcasses and from 1 of 1,082 samples of boneless product. No Campylobacter spp. were isolated from carcasses or boneless beef. Coagulase-positive staphylococci were isolated from 28.7% of beef carcasses and 20.3% of boneless beef samples, and positive samples had a mean count of 0.3 log CFU/cm2 and 0.8 log CFU/g, respectively.


2000 ◽  
Vol 124 (3) ◽  
pp. 417-425 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. RUTTER ◽  
G. L. NICHOLS ◽  
A. SWAN ◽  
J. DE LOUVOIS

Results from statutory testing of private water supplies in nine Public Health Laboratories in England were compiled, and the effects of supply class, source, treatment and location on water quality were examined. A total of 6551 samples from 2911 supplies was examined, over a 2-year period, of which 1342 (21%) samples, and 949 (33%) supplies on at least one occasion, failed current regulations for Escherichia coli. Total coliforms, including E. coli, were detected in 1751 (27%) samples from 1215 (42%) supplies. The percentage of samples positive for E. coli was highest in summer and autumn, and lowest in winter. Samples taken from larger supplies and from boreholes were less frequently contaminated than those from other sources. Chlorination, filtration or UV light treatment improved the bacteriological quality of supplies, but still resulted in a low level of compliance with the regulations. The public health implications of the study are discussed.


2012 ◽  
Vol 75 (10) ◽  
pp. 1862-1866 ◽  
Author(s):  
DAVID PHILLIPS ◽  
KATHRYN BRIDGER ◽  
IAN JENSON ◽  
JOHN SUMNER

The fourth national baseline microbiological survey of Australian beef was conducted in 2011, including frozen boneless beef and, for the first time, samples from selected beef primal cuts. Cartons of frozen boneless beef (n = 1,165) sampled at 29 boning (fabrication) plants were found to have a mean total viable count of 2.2 log CFU/g, and the mean count for the 2.1% of samples with detectable Escherichia coli was 1.3 log CFU/g. The mean total viable counts for striploins (longissimus dorsi, n = 572) and outsides (biceps femoris, n = 572) were 1.3 and 1.5 log CFU/cm2 respectively. E. coli isolates were obtained from 10.7 and 25.2% of striploins and outsides, respectively, with mean counts of −0.5 and −0.3 log CFU/cm2 on positive samples. E. coli O157:H7, Salmonella, and Campylobacter were not isolated from any primal cut samples, and Salmonella was not isolated from any of the boneless product (E. coli O157:H7 and Campylobacter were not tested for). Listeria spp. were not detected in any of the boneless product, and one Listeria isolate was obtained on 1 (0.2%) of 572 striploin samples. Coagulase-positive staphylococci were isolated from 3.4% of boneless beef samples, 7.7% of beef striploins, and 8.4% of beef outsides, with positive samples having mean log counts of 1.9 CFU/g, 0.2 CFU/cm2, and 0.2 CFU/cm2, respectively.


2017 ◽  
Vol 145 (8) ◽  
pp. 1545-1556 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. McLAUCHLIN ◽  
F. JØRGENSEN ◽  
H. AIRD ◽  
A. CHARLETT ◽  
N. ELVISS ◽  
...  

SUMMARYThe purpose of this study was to investigate the microbiological quality of liver pâté. During 2012–13, a total of 870 samples, unrelated to the investigation of food-poisoning outbreaks, were collected either at retail (46%), catering (53%) or the point of manufacture (1%) and were tested using standard methods to detect Salmonella spp. or Campylobacter spp., and to enumerate for Listeria spp., including Listeria monocytogenes, Clostridium perfringens, coagulase-positive staphylococci including Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus spp., including Bacillus cereus, Escherichia coli, Enterobacteriaceae, and aerobic colony counts (ACCs). Seventy-three percent of samples were of satisfactory microbiological quality, 18% were borderline and 9% unsatisfactory. Salmonella spp. or Campylobacter spp. was not recovered from any sample. The most common causes of unsatisfactory results were elevated ACCs (6% of the samples) and high Enterobacteriaceae counts (4% of samples). The remaining unsatisfactory results were due to elevated counts of: E. coli (three samples); B. cereus (one sample at 2·6 × 105 cfu/g); or L. monocytogenes (one sample at 2·9 × 103 cfu/g). Pâté from retail was less likely to be contaminated with L. monocytogenes than samples collected from catering and samples from supermarkets were of significantly better microbiological quality than those from catering establishments.


Food Research ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 98-105
Author(s):  
S.R. Latchumaya ◽  
M.N.S.S. Hameed ◽  
P. Arkappan ◽  
R.J. Sreedharam ◽  
P. Sandrasaigaran

Ready-to-eat (RTE) street foods are usually prepared well in advance (4-8 hrs) before the sale. Owning to minimal cooking procedures, cross-contaminations, and abused holding temperature and time, there is a high probability for deteriorating microbiological quality in these foods. Thus, this study was aimed to assess the bacteriological quality of RTE foods sampled from night markets and street stalls based on the guidelines provided by the Public Health Laboratory Service. A total of fifty samples (category 2, 3 and 4) were evaluated for aerobic colony count, total coliform, and E. coli. The pathogenic strain E. coli O157: H7 were examined using the multiplex PCR technique. It was noticed that category 3 and 4 RTE street foods were largely unsatisfactory for the coliform (>104 CFU/ mL) and E. coli count (>100 CFU/mL). In opposite, category 2 RTE street foods were unsatisfactory for the aerobic colony count (>105 CFU/mL) and E. coli (>100 CFU/ mL). However, there was no E. coli O157: H7 or Shiga-toxin producing bacteria reported in this study. The statistical analysis showed that in overall, category 3 and 4 RTE street foods were significantly at worsening bacteriological quality compared to category 2. Strict legal enforcement and amending the existing rules are needed to improve the quality of RTE street foods sold in the night markets and street stalls.


2001 ◽  
Vol 64 (5) ◽  
pp. 692-696 ◽  
Author(s):  
DAVID PHILLIPS ◽  
JOHN SUMNER ◽  
JODIE F. ALEXANDER ◽  
KYM M. DUTTON

A survey of the microbiological quality of beef carcasses and boneless beef produced in Australia was conducted during the period June to November 1998. Sponge samples were collected from 1,275 carcasses, and meat samples were drilled from 990 cartons of frozen boneless beef. Carcass and boneless beef samples were respectively collected from 21 and 27 establishments that concentrated on export and from 38 and 3 establishments supplying the Australian domestic market of which 31 were very small plants slaughtering no more than 150 cattle equivalents per week. The mean log total viable counts (TVCs) were 2.42/cm2 and 2.52/g for carcasses and boneless meat, respectively. Escherichia coli was detected on 10.3% of carcasses and 5.1% of boneless beef samples and coagulase-positive staphylococci on 24.3% of carcasses and 17.5% of boneless beef. Salmonella was detected on 0.2% of carcasses and 0.1% of boneless beef and E. coli O157:H7 recovered from 0.1% of carcasses but not detected on 990 boneless beef samples. Mean log TVCs/cm2 differed significantly (P < 0.05) between establishment types. They were lower on carcasses from export establishments (2.20) compared with domestic (2.61) and very small plants (3.10). There were no significant differences in prevalence of Salmonella or E. coli O157:H7 between establishment types. Excision samples were taken from 670 carcasses to make comparisons with the first baseline study of Australian meat, carried out in 1993 to 1994. While there were differences in sampling and microbiological techniques between the two studies that require detailed consideration, there were small but significant improvements in several microbiological criteria for carcasses and boneless meat.


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