https://doi.org/10.4081/ijfs.2022.9983
Investigation on the microbiological hazards in an artisanal soft cheese produced in northern Italy and its production environment in different seasonal periods
Submitted: 15 July 2021
Accepted: 10 January 2022
Published: 22 June 2022
Accepted: 10 January 2022
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All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.
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The present study aimed at assessing the occurrence of microbiological hazards (Listeria monocytogenes, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella spp. and Escherichia coli O157) in an artisanal soft cheese produced in northern Italy. In the same product total bacterial count, lactic acid bacteria and Enterobacteriaceae were enumerated, and pH and water activity measured in two batches sampled in summer and winter. Samples of raw materials, environmental swabs from the production processes and cheese during 15 days of storage at 2 and 8°C as well as dynamic temperature of 2°C for 5 days and 8°C for 10 days were collected and tested. The load of total bacterial count was significantly higher in the winter batch in comparison to the summer one, with a significant increase at the end of the storage period also noticed for lactic acid bacteria. Statistical higher values of pH were registered in raw materials and end of storage in winter batch. S. aureus was confirmed only in the winter batch within samples (n=4) of stored cheese. On plates used for E. coli O157 detection, colonies of Klebsiella pneumoniae and Klebsiella oxytoca were isolated. The results suggest that the highest bacterial population in the winter batch was associated to a higher pH in stored cheese and a higher number of biological hazards identified. Their isolation started in the maturation room suggesting this step as relevant for possible cheese contamination.
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How to Cite
1.
Crippa C, Pasquali F, Lucchi A, Gambi L, De Cesare A. Investigation on the microbiological hazards in an artisanal soft cheese produced in northern Italy and its production environment in different seasonal periods. Ital J Food Safety [Internet]. 2022 Jun. 22 [cited 2024 Dec. 22];11(2). Available from: https://www.pagepressjournals.org/ijfs/article/view/9983
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