Microbiological Assessment and Prevalence of Food Borne Pathogens in Street Vended Wara - Nigerian White Cheese

Omemu A.M^1, , Obadina O. A², Taiwo G.J³ and Obuotor T.M.³

¹Department of Hospitality and Tourism, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB)

²Department of Food Science and Technology, FUNAAB

³Department of Microbiology, FUNAAB

Cite this paper:
Omemu A.M, Obadina O. A, Taiwo G.J and Obuotor T.M.. Microbiological Assessment and Prevalence of Food Borne Pathogens in Street Vended Wara - Nigerian White Cheese. American Journal of Food and Nutrition. 2014; 2(4):59-62. doi: 10.12691/ajfn-2-4-2

Abstract

Fifty white cheese (wara) samples were collected from ten local cheese hawkwer/vendors within Abeokuta, Nigeria to determine the microbial characteristics and the prevalence of some common food borne pathogen. The total aerobic plate counts (TPC) ranged from 6.8 to 9.5 log cfu/g; Lactic acid bacteria counts ranged from 2.8 to 6.9 log cfu/g while yeasts and mould counts ranged from 2.8 to 6.6 log cfu/g. Significant (p<0.05) variations were found between vendors and microbial population. The mean S. aureus count was 6.5 log cfu/g Salmonella, Presumptive E. coli and Bacillus cereus counts were 0.3, 2.4 and 3.3 log cfu/g respectively. B. cereus was found in 78%, Staphylococcus aureus in 100%, presumptive E. coli in 56% and Salmonella spp in 6% of the 50 wara cheese samples tested. None of the samples analyzed contained Vibrio cholerae. The results indicate that wara cheese presents a potential hazard for public health; and necessary precaution will have to be taken to improve the sanitary practices and cheese manufacturing technique.

Keywords:
cheese wara food-borne pathogen street vended

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