Abstract
Milk has an outstanding nutritional quality but is also an excellent medium for bacterial growth and an important source of bacterial infection when consumed without pasteurization. To estimate the bacterial health risk of milk consumption in Accra and Kumasi, the two major cities in Ghana. A total of 96 raw milk samples collected in 2002 from the two sites were cultured and the isolated organisms identified by standard bacteriological methods. Overall, the organisms identified and their prevalence rates were Yersinia spp. (19.8%), Klebsiella spp (16.7%), Proteus spp. (7.3%), Enterobacter spp. (6.3%), Escherichia coli (2.1%), and Staphylococcus spp (14.6%), Bacillus spp. (11.5%) and Mycobacterium spp. (1%). Most of the organisms identified were enterobacteria indicating probable faecal contamination of the milk as a result of poor hygiene. Most of the bacteria identified in the milk sampled are potential food-borne pathogens, and though some of them occurred in few samples, the practice of pooling milk from different sources by traders, and the absence of pasteurization generally observed among them could increase the risk posed by such organisms. The study has shown that informally marketed raw milk in the two cities could be an important source of infection with a wide range of organisms, particularly enterobacteria. There is the need for instituting effective control measures including improved hygienic handling of milk and its pasteurization to protect public health.
Highlights
Milk has an outstanding nutritional quality, but is an efficient vehicle for transmission of diseases to humans
Recent studies have established the emergence of new milk-borne bacterial pathogens such as Escherichia coli O157:H7 with more serious challenges for public health and the diary industry[2]
In Ghana, studies done on selected farms show that raw milk may be contaminated by a wide range of bacteria, including Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas pyocyaneus, Bacillus, and Corynebacterium spp[4,5]
Summary
Milk has an outstanding nutritional quality, but is an efficient vehicle for transmission of diseases to humans. Recent studies have established the emergence of new milk-borne bacterial pathogens such as Escherichia coli O157:H7 with more serious challenges for public health and the diary industry[2]. To protect public health against milk-borne infections, there are regulations that require proper hygienic handling of milk and its pasteurization. Such regulations are not usually adhered to in developing countries, making milk-borne health risk higher in developing countries. It is submitted that if efforts are made to produce safe and good quality milk, it would protect public health, and stimulate growth of dairy industry in Ghana. This study was carried out to estimate the bacterial health risk associated with informally marketed raw milk in Accra and Kumasi, two major cities in Ghana. The study investigated the agents of milk-borne bacterial infections and the prevalence rates in milk
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