Production and Microbial Quality of “charmout”, a Dried Meat Produced in Chad

Ali Haroun Hissein^{1, 2}, François Tapsoba², Himeda Makhlouf^{1, 3}, Cisse Hama², Abel Tankoano², Hassan Mahamat Ali^{1, 2}, Cheikna Zongo², Abdessalam Tidjani¹ and Aly Savadogo^2,

¹Food Science and Nutrition Research Laboratory (LaRSAN), University of N'Djamena (Chad)

²Applied Biochemistry and Immunology Laboratory (LaBIA), Joseph Ki-Zerbo University of Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso)

³Directorate of Nutrition and Food Technology (DNTA), Ministry of Health, N'Djamena, Chad

Cite this paper:
Ali Haroun Hissein, François Tapsoba, Himeda Makhlouf, Cisse Hama, Abel Tankoano, Hassan Mahamat Ali, Cheikna Zongo, Abdessalam Tidjani and Aly Savadogo. Production and Microbial Quality of “charmout”, a Dried Meat Produced in Chad. American Journal of Food Science and Technology. 2023; 11(1):1-7. doi: 10.12691/ajfst-11-1-1

Abstract

The charmout is a meat product obtained by drying meat and used in the preparation of sauces in some Sahelian countries. However, charmout is produced and sold under unhygienic conditions. It is therefore susceptible to contamination by pathogenic and toxigenic microorganisms. The objective of this study was to isolate and identify bacterial and fungal strains contaminating charmout produced and sold in six localities in Chad. Thus, 30 samples were collected in 6 production localities. The enumeration of total flora, coliforms, Staphylococcus sp, yeasts and molds was done according to standard microbiological methods. The API 20E gallery was used for the identification of isolated Escherichia coli and Salmonella strains. Fungal strains were identified on the basis of morphological and cultural criteria using specific identification keys. The results of the microbiological analyses revealed the presence of pathogenic and toxigenic microorganisms in the charmout produced in Chad. Loads of total coliforms, thermotolerant coliforms, Staphylococcus sp, as well as yeasts and molds ranged from 10² to 4.32x10⁵; 10² to 1.18x10⁵; 2.80x10³ to 1.80x10⁵ and 3.05x10² to 1.7x10⁵ CFU/g respectively. All samples were free of Salmonella spp the prevalence of contamination of the samples was 100% (30/30) and 36.67% (11/30) by Staphylococcus sp and Escherichia coli respectively. The mold species identified were Aspergilus flavus, Aspergilus niger and Aspergilus lentulus. Based on these results, the consumption of charmout could constitute a health risk for the consumer. Thus, the application of Good Hygienic Practices and the improvement of production techniques are necessary to guarantee the health of the consumers.

Keywords:
charmout microbial quality pathogens toxinogens Chad

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