Microbiological safety of street vended ayib in Jimma town, southwest Ethiopia

The wide spread habit of street vended cheese consumption is a potential cause for food borne illness, besides the common factors such as over-crowding, inadequate sanitation, and poor hygiene. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the microbial quality of street vended Ayib and the associated health risks to consumers of the product in Jimma Town, south west Ethiopia. The microbial quality of different sample of Ayib being sold on the streets of Jimma Town was assessed following the standard microbiological analysis from December, 2010 to June, 2011. Accordingly, a total of 60 samples were collected from three streets Ayib selling market sites of Jimma Town for the analysis of Aerobic Mesophilic Bacteria (AMB) a, Enterobacteriacea, Staphylococcus, Lactic Acid Bacteria, Yeasts and Molds. Preliminary survey was also conducted to get information on the handling practice to trace source of contamination. Moreover, physico-chemical characteristics such as pH and titratable acidity of the Ayib were determined. Data was analyzed using SPSS of windows version 16.0. The mean microbial count of samples was found to be dominated by both AMB and Lactic Acid Bacteria, followed by Enterobacteriacea. The pH and titratable acidity were 4.2±0.02 and 0.21, respectively, indicating the Ayib samples were in acidic range. From among a total of 198 isolates characterized, only 13.1% were found to be Gram negative bacteria with the likelihood that some are potentially pathogenic. Even though the handling practice of Ayib sellers was very poor, the acidic nature of the food somehow provided protection against survival and growth of pathogenic microorganisms. However, bodies concerned and sanitary workers should work on health education in relation to Ayib hygiene before the likely outbreak of Ayib-borne diseases.