Microbial Quality Of Ready To Eat Foods Sold Within Umudike:- Duru Chikodi G

ABSTRACT

 The microbiological quality of'Ready-to-eat foods sold within Umudike was evaluated by standard microbiological methods. The samples were analyzed for total aerobic count, total coliform count and total fungal count. The identification ofbacterial and fungal isolates were also carried out. The isolated bacteria were of the genera Bacillus, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Shigella. The fungal isolated were of the genera Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus flavus, and Rhizopus stolonifer. These findings suggests that locally prepared foods sold in Umudike may constitute source of food poisoning, consequently public health hazards. The need for improvement and maintenance of good hygienic practices by food handlers and vendors in the market is emphasized.