Bacterial contamination in vended animal food products around motor parks in Ibadan,South West Nigeria

Abstract

Consumers ingest significant amounts of food being unaware that there is a potential problem hence they become ill. This study was carried out to obtain the bacteriological profiles of vended animal food products. Seven (7) different ready-to-eat animal food products were sampled from different motor parks in Ibadan, southwest Nigeria. Bacteria were isolated on plate count agar (PCA) and eosin methylene blue (EMB) agar for the total aerobic organisms and the presence of coliforms. The isolated organisms were identified and characterized following standard morphological and biochemical tests. A total of thirty-six bacteria were identified and fall into the genera Bacillus (25%), Escherichia coli (16.7%), Staphylococcus (13.9%), Micrococcus (13.9%), Pseudomonas (13.9%), Yersinia (11.1%) and Actinobacillus (2.8%). Food sample A (large prawns) had the heaviest microbial load (22%) and food sample E (“Kudu”) had the lowest (8.3%). A major concern with street foods is safety. Majority of the foods are prepared and sold under unhygienic conditions. These kinds of foods pose a high risk of food poisoning due to microbial contamination. This study should sensitize public health authorities on the need to impose strict regulations on food standards.