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Assessing the Microbial Quality of Tahini (Sesame Paste) in Lebanon

Authors:
Zeinab Alaouie
Nancy Hallal
Ali AlKhatib
Hassan Khachfe

Keywords: Tahini; Sesame Paste; Microbiology; Lebanon

Abstract:
The microbiological quality of tahini produced by several manufacturers in Lebanon was evaluated. Forty two tahini samples were collected randomly from retail markets throughout the country with production dates ranging from October 2015 to August 2017. The majority of the samples were from companies that are international exporters of the product. Six of the obtained samples were from a traditional tahini manufacturer. All samples were assessed for the total aerobic plate count, the presence and enumeration of Staphylococcus aureus, yeasts and molds, Salmonella, coliforms and Escherichia coli. Spread plate methods were used for detection and enumeration. The following results were obtained: the aerobic plate count of the samples ranged between 1x102 CFU/g and 6.2x105 CFU/g with an average of 6.9x104 CFU/g. S. aureus count ranged between <20 CFU/g and 9.2x103 CFU/g with an average of 4.7x102 CFU/g. Yeasts and molds were present at counts ranging from <10 CFU/g to 1.5x105 with an average of 2.3x104 CFU/g. Total coliform counts ranged between <30 CFU/g and 3.4x105 CFU/g with an average of 3.4x104 CFU/g. E. coli was present in 43% of the samples (18 out of 42), while Salmonella was confirmed present in 17% of the samples (7 out of 42). When compared with Lebanese standards, many of the samples showed unacceptable quantities of microbial contamination and this was not impacted by the storage time, nor the processing method.

Pages: 20 to 24

Copyright: Copyright (c) IARIA, 2017

Publication date: November 12, 2017

Published in: conference

ISSN: 2308-4553

ISBN: 978-1-61208-604-0

Location: Barcelona, Spain

Dates: from November 12, 2017 to November 16, 2017