The study of Iranian food contact plastic wrap contamination with bacteria causing food-borne disease

Subject Areas : Food-Borne Diseases

Hajieh  Ghasemian Safaei ¹ (Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran Food Security Research Center, Faculty of Nutrition and Food Sciences, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran)
Nasrin  Mirzaei ² (Graduated of Microbiology, Department of Microbiology, Tonekabon Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tonekabon, Iran)
Ahmand Reza  Bahrami ³ (Graduated of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Shahrekord Branch, Islamic Azad University, Shahrekord, Iran)
Bayan  Saeidi ⁴ (MSc student, Faculty of Nutrition and Food Sciences, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran)
Ebrahim  Rahimi ⁵ (Department of Food Hygiene and Quality Control, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Shahrekord Branch, Islamic Azad University, Shahrekord, Iran)

Received: 2016-10-30 Accepted : 2018-06-12 Published : 2018-05-22

Keywords: Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus, Packaging, plastic wrap, food-borne disease,

Abstract :

The use of plastic wrap for foodstuff is very common in the world. Plastic wrap is impermeable to air, oils, greases, and more importantly, bacteria which makes it useful for food packaging. Bacillus cereus and Staphylococcus aureus are of important pathogens and the most common cause of food-borne disease.Ten Iranian plastic wraps with different brands were chosen and identification was done by biochemical test and serial dilution methods. After microorganism identification, selective and differential medium cultures were used to confirm bacteria. Among ten Iranian plastic wrap; seven samples were devoid of any contamination, while two samples had Bacillus cereus contamination and one plastic wrap sample had Staphylococcus aureus contamination. According to the result of serial dilution, 1.6X104 CFU and 2.1X102 CFU Bacillus cereus and 1.7X101 CFU Staphylococcus aureus was counted. Acceptable microbial limits for Bacillus cereus and Staphylococcus aureus per gram of plastic wrap need to be established by international organizations for standardization. Besides, the presence of Bacillus cereus and Staphylococcus aureus on plastic wrap surface and related disease in food contact plastic wrap needs to have a continuous investigation.