Abstract
The desire for a healthy lifestyle and faster mode of preparation has supported the consumption of ready to eat fresh salad. Street vended salads are recognized as a source of pathogenic transamination in different parts of the world. The present study was designed to evaluate the safety status of fresh vegetable and Russian salads being sold at various food outlets of Faisalabad. Samples of freshly prepared salads were collected from representative selected different areas of Faisalabad city divided into four different zones (zone 1, zone 2, zone 3 and zone 4). Prevalence and enumeration of Listeria was done through microbial testing via the spread plate method. Among samples of vegetable salad, highest prevalence of Listeria was found in the zone 2 (75%) whereas Russian salad samples from zones 1 and 3 exhibited 62% prevalence, the highest among all 4 zones of study. On the whole, the lowest prevalence of Listeria was found in zone 4 (50% vegetable salad and 58% Russian salad). Biochemical conformation of Listeria done through different tests for the identification of various Listeria species, exhibited that Listeria monocytogenes and Listeria innocua were highly prevalent in samples from zones 1 and 3 respectively. The results will help to improve safety concerns associated with street vended foods.
Highlights
Pathogenic microorganisms significantly exist in street vended foods and cause foodborne illnesses in all parts of world
This study provides the prevalence data of Listeria monocytogenes for Vegetable salad and Russian salad
Prevalence of Listeria in street vended vegetable salad samples gathered from zone 1, Locations Total prevalence Total prevalence in vegetable salad in Russian salad
Summary
Pathogenic microorganisms significantly exist in street vended foods and cause foodborne illnesses in all parts of world. Contaminated foodstuff is the main cause oftwenty to thirty per cent spreading of Listeria infection that causes ninety-five percent cases of food poisoning[2]. Almost one third population is distressed with foodborne infections in industrialized countries whereas the problem is worse in developing countries due to poverty, overcrowding, inadequate sanitary conditions and poor general hygiene[3]. Listeria increases the rate of death up to 25-30% just because of hygienically poor environment and inadequate management of food processing[5]. Due to consumption of contaminated and unhygienic foods nearly 76 million infections, 325,000 hospitalizations and 5000 deaths are caused annually in United States of America[24]
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