SANIFICATION PROTOCOLS EVALUATION IN BUTCHER SHOPS AND FISH MARKETS WITH LABORATORY FOR COOKED AND/OR READY TO COOK PRODUCTION – PRELIMINARY RESULTS

Abstract

The application of sanification protocols is a pre-requisite for safety and hygienic quality assurance of foodstuff. At the moment food business operators establish own hygienic standards based on literature or internal standards. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of cleaning and disinfection protocols in 57 butcher shops and 27 fish markets in Fermo and Ascoli Piceno. During the routine official inspections, from March and December 2008, 272 environmental samples were collected by swab method on sanitized surfaces (table, cutting board and working plan ...) and equipment (balances, mincers, bacons, slicers ...) and examined for total aerobic mesophilic count (CMT) and Enterobacteriaceae. The results obtained were ranked into three microbiological classes (CMT Log CFU/cm2 class A: