Ocorrência de escherichia coli em queijo coalho obtido por processo industrial

Abstract

Coalho cheese is a food produced for more than 150 years, with greater production in the Northeast region, mostly by artisanal processes. It is often prepared as raw milk, which does not meet hygienic-sanitary standards and may pose a risk to the health of the consumer. The pathogenic microorganisms most commonly found in cheese are those of the coliform group, which are Gram-negative, non-sporulating rods that ferment lactose. Group of thermotolerant coliforms may indicate an even greater risk of contamination in this food, indicating that the raw material used in manufacturing may have been contaminated with feces during the process and may be a vehicle for contamination of Escherichia coli, which compromises human health. The present work was carried out with 4 brands of coalho cheese of industrial origin sold in João Pessoa-PB, with 3 different batches for each brand of cheese, totaling 12 samples, with the objective of investigating the occurrence of mesophilic bacteria, coliforms and Escherichia coli . The methodology used was in accordance with standard procedures for specific aerobic mesophilic bacteria, total coliforms, thermotolerants and Escherichia coli. For the count of mesophilic bacteria, all samples had growth for this bacteria, values ranging from 6,10 x 107 CFU/g to 1,70 x 109 CFU/g were obtained. Regarding the presence of total and thermotolerant coliforms, all samples had values >1,100 MPN/g and regarding the occurrence of Escherichia coli, 50% of the samples had growth of this bacterium with values ranging from <3 MPN/g to 16 MPN/g. All analyzed coalho cheeses are in unsatisfactory hygienic-sanitary conditions, being able to have a better control regarding the good practices in their production, transport and storage, in the case of pathogenic bacteria Escherichia coli, the analyzed cheeses do not represent a risk to the health of the consumer, since their values are in accordance with those established in the legislation.