Abstract
Egusi pudding is one of the most popular traditional dishes of the Cameroonian population. Besides its nutritional values, it is also endowed with a sociocultural character. Nowadays, consumer demand for Egusi pudding has increased and the dish is sold as street food in several cities of Cameroon and mostly under uncontrolled hygienic conditions. The objective of this study was to assess the microbiological quality of Egusi pudding sold in the city of Yaoundé taking into consideration the protein sources and the sampling sites. Five types of Egusi pudding samples based on protein sources were randomly collected from 25 sellers distributed in 7 districts in the city of Yaoundé and their microbiological quality were assessed. The results showed that the total aerobic count of the different samples (2.97 ± 0.03 to 4.43 ± 0.05 Log CFU/g) was under the threshold value (5.47 Log CFU/g) recommended for food intended for human consumption. Loads of fecal coliforms (1.47 ± 0.00 to 5.47 ± 0.00 Log CFU/g) in 40% of samples, Escherichia coli (2.39 ± 0.12 to 5.43 ± 0.05 Log CFU/g) in 60% of samples, fecal streptococci (2.90 ± 0.15 to 4.74 ± 0.05 Log CFU/g) in 88% of samples, Pseudomonas spp. (3.39 ± 0.15 to 5.43 ± 0.06 Log CFU/g) in 100% of samples, and the presence of Salmonella spp. in 56% of samples revealed a poor level of hygiene of the vendors. Pathogens associated with unsafe food handling such as Staphylococcus spp. were found in 100% of samples at loads (3.84 ± 0.18 to 5.43 ± 0.05 Log cfu/g) higher than the norms of the European Commission. Potential toxigenic pathogens such as Clostridium perfringens, Yersinia enterocolitica, Bacillus cereus, and moulds were also found, respectively, in 100, 96, 96, and 100% of samples. Overall, the most contaminated samples were those made with sardine as protein source, 92.85% (n = 23/25), followed with beef (88.57%), mackerel (84.28%), cod (82.85%), and control (77.1%). The results of this study suggest that important measures should be taken by the Public Health Service in order to sensitize the producers and vendors of Egusi pudding on the respect of good hygiene, manufacturing practices, and the continuous monitor of the quality of traditional products sold in markets.
Highlights
Street foods can be defined as food and beverages prepared or cooked and sold by street vendors at similar public places for immediate consumption [1]. e practice of street food which is constantly evolving is rapidly spreading in the world’s metropolises and especially in developing countries.e reasons are the high unemployment rate, low incomes, urbanization, migration to cities, demographic growth, lack of time for cooking, and poor culinary knowledge about the preparation process of some meals [2,3,4]
Microbiological analyses of Egusi pudding samples revealed the presence of several groups of microorganisms at loads varying from a sample to another as a function of the protein source and the sampling site (Table 1). e total mesophilic aerobic flora (TMAF) counts of the different samples varied from 2.97 ± 0.03 to 4.43 ± 0.05 Log colony-forming units (CFU)/g
E least contaminated samples were those collected from the sites Etoug-Ebe (2.97 ± 0.03 Log CFU/g) and Cite Verte (3.81 ± 0.04 Log CFU/g) while the most contaminated ones were from sites Biyem-Assi (4.43 ± 0.05 Log CFU/g) and Obili (4.45 ± 0.02 Log CFU/g)
Summary
Street foods can be defined as food and beverages prepared or cooked and sold by street vendors at similar public places for immediate consumption [1]. e practice of street food which is constantly evolving is rapidly spreading in the world’s metropolises and especially in developing countries.e reasons are the high unemployment rate, low incomes, urbanization, migration to cities, demographic growth, lack of time for cooking, and poor culinary knowledge about the preparation process of some meals [2,3,4]. Street food allows 2.5 million of the population of various age groups to eat nutritious meals conveniently, and cheaply outside their living home [1] It plays an important role in the cultural and social heritage of societies as several traditional foods of various flavors are marketed in the streets [5,6,7,8]. Despite these multiple advantages, street foods are a culture medium, susceptible to contamination by pathogens, and are vectors of microorganisms that might cause foodborne diseases [9]. In addition to the health damage, these result in global financial losses of about $95.2 million per year in low- and middle-income countries, with more than $15 million spent on foodborne illness treatment [1]
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