Microbial Contamination of Grocery Shopping Trolleys and Baskets in West Texas

摘要

The objective of this study was to identify food safety risk factors associated with supermarket trolleys (grills and handles) and handheld baskets. Indicator microorganisms evaluated were those detected by aerobic plate count (APC), yeast and molds (YM), Enterobacteriaceae (EB), environmental Listeria (EL), coliforms (CF), and E. coli (EC). In addition, Listeria monocytogenes, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli 0157 and Salmonella sp. were tested for. Trolley grills (n = 36) had EB counts of 2.4 x 102 CFU/cm2. Trolley handles (n = 36) had 2.7 x 10B of CF and 5.2 CFU/ cm8 of YM. The bottom of handheld baskets (n = 25) had 3.5 x 105 CFU/cm2 of CF and 5.07 CFU/cm2 of EC. S. aureus was found on 96% of the baskets, 50% of the trolley handles (18 out of 36 samples], and 42% of the trolleys' grills. E. coli 01 57 was identified on 17% of baskets, 3% on trolley grills, and 3% on handles. Salmonella sp. was detected on 16% of baskets and 8% of trolley grills. L. monocytogenes was detected on17% of the bottoms of handheld baskets but on none of the other samples. These results suggest the need for implementation of sanitation programs to regularly clean trolleys and baskets, as well as for consumer education.