Microbiological Safety During Processing of Food Ingredients Supplied to Elementary School Food Services in Daegu and Gyeongbuk Provinces

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to evaluate changes in the microbiological safety of food ingredients supplied to elementary school food services during processing. For this purpose, fifteen food ingredients and twelve factories were chosen in the provinces of Daegu and Gyeongbuk. Total plate counts and coliform counts were reduced in the ingredients after washing, but they increased after packing. After packing, the following levels of total plate counts and coliforms were detected, respectively peeled bellflower roots (1.2~3.6x10(6), 3.1~4.6x10(5) CFU/g), blanched vegetables (5.6x10(3)~2.0x10(5), <5~1.5x10(4) CFU/g), soybean curd ( <5~5.4x10(3), <5~2.2x10(3) CFU/g), buckwheat starch jelly ( <5, <5 CFU/g), soybean sprouts (1.2x10(6)~1.8x10(7), 2.4x10(5)~4.3x10(6) CFU/g), mackerel (2.2x10(2), 1.3x10(2) CFU/g), chicken (3.8x10(4), 6.7x10(2) CFU/g), pork (6.7x10(2), <5 CFU/g), and beef (9.4x10(2)~5.2x10(4), <5~2.1x10(3) CFU/g). Generally, the microbiological safety of the food ingredients was better during the processing stage than during the other stages, with the exception of packing. Staphylococcus aureus, E. coli, and Bacillus cereus were detected in small amounts on the peeled bellflower roots, chicken, and pork, respectively. These results indicate that peeled bellflower roots, chicken, and pork need to be sanitized at the washing stage and cross contamination must be prevented at the packing stage.