Microbiological quality of raw vegetables grown in Bekaa Valley, Lebanon.

摘要

Microbiological quality of fresh vegetables collected from several regions in the Bekaa Valley area of the Lebanon was investigated. A total of 63 vegetable samples irrigated by water from the Litani River, including lettuce, parsley and malva samples, were tested in comparison with control vegetables irrigated from groundwater wells. Microbial counts in the fresh vegetables were in the ranges: 4.3-10.4 log10 cfu/g for aerobic bacteria; 2.0-0.71 log10 cfu/g for coliforms; 1.0-8.77 log10 cfu/g for Escherichia coli; and 1.47-8.77 log10 cfu/g for Staphylococcus aureus. Lettuce samples had significantly higher microbial loads including coliforms, E. coli and S. aureus than parsley samples collected from various locations. Neither E. coli nor S. aureus were detected on malva samples. Highest counts of coliforms, E. coli and S. aureus were observed in samples from Barelias. E. coli counts were significantly higher in lettuce samples (42.30%) than in parsley samples (13.8%) and S. aureus was significantly more frequently detected in lettuce samples (51.5%) than in parsley samples (38%). Results suggest that lettuce and parsley, which are usually consumed raw, may contain pathogenic microorganisms and represent a risk for human health.