Investigating the Amount of Microbial Contamination of Pasteurized Milk in Kermanshah City with Coliform and the Total Number of Bacteria

One of the most widely consumed dairy products is milk, which has a high nutritional value and is favorable for the growth of microorganisms due to its environmental nutrients and due to the sensitivity of this product, ensuring the health and bacteriological quality after Pasteurization is of particular importance. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the amount of coliform contamination and the total number of bacteria in pasteurized milk in kermanshah city.

To measure the microbial load of pasteurized milk in Kermanshah city, coliforms were performed using the most probable number of MPN on lactose culture medium and to count the total number of bacteria from the standard number 5272. Data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA and SPSS software version 22.

The results of testing 144 samples of pasteurized milk performed in twelve months, showed that the contamination rate was 46% (29 out of 144 cases) and the highest contamination with coliforms was in July with 4 cases (33.3%) and the lowest contamination was related to August and November with 1 case (8.33%). Also, the highest amounts of bacteria were related to July, August and September, respectively, and the lowest was related to January.

According to the obtained analyzes, it was found that the amount of coliform contamination and the total number of bacteria was less than standard and indicates the standardization of monitoring systems, HACCP and health in pasteurization chain.