Microbial characteristics of food preparations in Benevento province

The aim of this preliminary study was to determine the microbiological quality of pastry products and gastronomic preparations served in food service establishments in Benevento province, Southern Italy. A total of 125 samples were collected from food service establishments. Parameters investigated were: aerobic plate counts (APCs), total Coliform bacteria counts, beta-glucuronidase-positive Escherichia (E.) coli counts, Enterobacteriaceae counts, coagulase-positive Staphylococci counts, isolation of Salmonella spp., Bacillus (B.) cereus counts, and isolation of Listeria (L.) monocytogenes. The microbiological quality was good, with absence of the pathogens L. monocytogenes and Salmonella spp. and extremely rare presence of E. coli. The fresh pastry and the uncooked gastronomy products were the most contaminated groups; also, cooked cold-served gastronomy products were susceptible to microbiological risk, as a result of the inadequate reheating and the interruption of the warm chain. On the contrary, dried pastry and cooked warm-served gastronomy products showed an excellent hygienic profile. In fact, the amount of compliant samples was 74.4%.