Prevalence of Staphylococcus aureus in Raw Hamburgers from Kashan in 2017

Staphylococcus aureus is considered a major cause of food poisoning in the world. We aimed to investigate the prevalence of S. aureus isolated from hamburgers in Kashan city.

In this study, 71 hamburger samples were collected from supermarkets in Kashan from March to July 2017. The samples were examined after dilution in the Baird–Parker Agar Base medium of inoculation for the bacterial growth of S. aureus. Gram staining, catalase tests, mannitol fermentation, coagulase, DNase, and sensitivity to novobiocin were used to detect the bacteria.

The collected hamburgers were about eight types of products. Of the total samples, 15 (21.13%) were Gram‑positive bacteria contaminated, including seven cocci and eight bacilli. Seven samples (9.86%) of hamburgers were contaminated with S. aureus. The average counts of S. aureus in positive samples were 1.94 × 103 colony‑forming unit (CFU)/g.

The outbreak of S. aureus isolates in meat products, particularly hamburger, is of serious threat to public health. To prevent the outbreak of this pathogen in hamburgers, permanent control and monitoring should be performed in food industries.