Journal of Food Quality and Hazards Control
Volume:5 Issue: 4, Dec 2018

“Chouriço Vinha d’Alhos” is a traditional fermented dry meat sausage from North of Portugal. The aim of this work was to evaluate the effects of a fresh and a lyophilized bioprotective Lactobacillus plantarum ST153Ch culture, on an industrial scale, on the physicochemical, microbiological, and sensorial characteristics of “Chouriço Vinha d’Alhos”. “Chouriço Vinha d’Alhos” added with Lb. plantarum ST153Ch (fresh or lyophilized) were analyzed for the physicochemical, microbiological, and sensorial characteristics, over 90 days of storage at 4 ºC. All data were statistically analyzed using an ANOVA procedure by IBM SPSS Statistics v. 25. The results showed that there was no difference in the reduction of L. monocytogenes, without or with the addition of Lb. plantarum either fresh or lyophilized. There were no significant differences (p>0.05) in some analyzed physicochemical parameters of products added with fresh or lyophilized Lb. plantarum cultures over the 90 days of storage; but both, fresh and lyophilized cultures, influenced some of the tested physicochemical parameters. Considering no significant differences between application methodologies (fresh or lyophilized Lb. plantarum), industry might be able to choose the most suitable method according to their manufacturing process.

Several health problems may be occurred due to consumption of mycotoxin-contaminated foods and feeds. The maize and oilseeds, as the main components of poultry feeds are susceptible to mould contamination and mycotoxin production. The aim of this study was to determine the presence of toxigenic Aspergillus spp. in poultry feeds from Ilaro, Nigeria. A total of 60 poultry feed samples were collected from five (A-E) feed millers in Ilaro, Nigeria. The feeds were classified into four groups, including broiler super starter, broiler starter, boiler grower mash, and broiler finisher mash. Moulds were isolated by spread plate technique and were identified using the conventional morphological method. The toxigenic potentials of the isolates were determined by ammonia vapor test. Statistical analysis was carried out using SPSS version 20. The results showed that all feed samples (100%) were contaminated with Aspergillus spp. Out of 93 Aspergillus spp. isolates, A. flavus (40 of 93) had the most prevalence, while A. parasiticus (8 of 93) was the least. Totally, 15 out of 93 (16.1%) Aspergillus spp. strains showed toxin production potentials. The presence of toxigenic Aspergillus in the feed leads to the secretion of hazardous toxins especially aflatoxins which can contaminate poultry meat endangering food chain. Consequently, there is an urgent need to create more awareness on the health implications of feeding poultry with mycotoxins-contaminated feeds in this region of Nigeria.

In many developing countries, numerous brands of bottled water and the relatively cheaper counterpart, sachet water, can be found in all cities, towns, and even villages. This study assessed the concentrations of some phthalates and metals in bottled and sachet water sold in Lagos, Nigeria. Fifteen pieces of plastic bottled water and 15 pieces of sachet water were randomly obtained from different street vendors in Lagos, Nigeria. High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) was used to determine the levels of dimethylphthalate (DMP), diethylphthalate (DEP), and dibutylphthalate (DBP). Also, atomic absorption spectroscopy assay was applied in order to assess the contents of metals, including zinc (Zn), chromium (Cr), lead (Pb), and cadmium (Cd). All statistical analyses were carried out using the SPSS (version 20). The mean concentrations of DMP, DEP, and DBP in bottled water samples were 0.564±0.074, 0.248±0.166, and 0.042±0.049 mg/L, respectively; these rates for sachet water samples were 0.803±0.049, 0.243±0.035, and 0.160±0.073 mg/L, respectively. Some significant differences (p<0.01) were found between phthalates concentrations of various water brands. The mean DMP concentration of sachet water samples was significantly higher (p<0.01) than that of bottled waters. The concentrations of Zn, Cr, Pb, and Cd in the samples were within the acceptable limits. The higher concentrations of phthalates in sachet water relative to bottled water indicate that drinking sachet water may pose higher risk of phthalates exposure.

In recent years, food-borne outbreaks have been increased by consumption of raw fruits and vegetables contaminated with bacterial pathogens like Salmonella spp. in many countries. This study was designed in order to molecular detection of Salmonella in Ready-to-Eat Vegetable Salad (REVS) consumed in restaurants of Tabriz, North-West of Iran. In this cross-sectional study, 90 REVS samples were randomly collected from five different areas of the Tabriz, Iran from February to June 2016. The presence of S. enterica serovar Typhimurium isolates was assessed using real-time polymerase chain reaction technique. Data analysis was performed using SPSS software version 19.0. Out of 90 REVS samples, 4 (4.44%) were found to be positive with S. enterica serovar Typhimurium. There was no significant difference between S. enetrica serovar Typhimurium prevalence in various areas (p>0.05). This survey showed that REVS consumed in restaurants of Tabriz, Iran may have public health risk in terms of presence of S. enterica serovar Typhimurium; so, it is required to improve the food safety standards in this area. Next investigations should be done to find the antimicrobial susceptibility of the identified isolates.

Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) are group of E. coli causing bloody diarrhea. The goal of this survey was to determine the prevalence of multidrug resistant shiga toxin-producing E. coli in cattle meat and its contact surfaces. Swab samples (n=120) were randomly collected from meat and contact surface of butchery shops in Sharkia province, Egypt. Prevalence of E. coli was examined using culture, biochemical, and serological methods. Identification of shiga toxin-encoding genes (stx1 and stx2) in the E. coli serotypes was done using multiplex polymerase chain reaction. Screening of multidrug resistance profile was done using the disk-diffusion method. Data were analyzed using JMP statistical package, SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC. The prevalence rates of E. coli in the chuck, round, masseter muscles, cutting-boards, walls, and floors were 20, 10, 30, 50, 40, and 60%, respectively. Among the isolates, E. coli O111:H4 and E. coli O26:H11 harbored the two mentioned genes. E. coli O86 and E. coli O114:H21 harbored only stx1; while E. coli O55:H7 encoded only stx2. Just E. coli O124 had no express of stx1 and stx2. The isolated E. coli serovars showed a multidrug resistance profile. Considering the results of this study, strict hygienic procedures should be followed to avoid or reduce carcass cross-contamination. In addition, proper handling and efficient cooking of meat are highly recommended by consumers to reduce the risk of human exposure to STEC.

Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) is one of the most important agents of travelers’ diarrheal diseases in the developing countries. The main purpose of this study was to determine the association of ETEC outbreaks with climatic and demographic variables in Yazd province of Iran. This study was done on 729 food-borne disease rectal swab samples, which gathered during 48 ETEC outbreaks in Yazd province from 2012 to 2016. The isolates were identified by biochemical tests, serotyping, and heat labile enterotoxin assays in Vero cell line culture. The climatic data was gathered from Iran’s Meteorological Organization and Yazd synoptic stations. Data were analyzed by Stata statistical software. The rates of ETEC outbreaks in Ashkezar, Mehriz, and Taft were significantly (p<0.05) more than the other cities of Yazd province. A positive relationship was found between suspended dust condition and the IR of ETEC outbreaks. The IR of ETEC outbreak in autumn was more than the other seasons. The present work showed the association of ETEC outbreaks with some factors such as demographic features, location status, and climate variations.