Microbiological quality assessment of five common foods sold at different points of sale in Burkina-Faso

The aim of the present study was to assess the microbial quality of five different types of food such as bread, pasta, rice with sauce, beans and milk sold in five localities of Burkina Faso. One hundred and one (101) samples were collected and microbial quality were assessed by evaluating the food hygiene indicators such as total aerobic mesophilic flora, total coliforms, thermotolerant coliforms, yeast and mould. Food safety indicators such as Escherichia coli, Salmonella, coagulase-positive staphylococci, Clostridium perfringens and Bacillus cereus were checked too. All samples were analyzed under ISO methods. The results showed that 73.27% of samples were satisfactory while 14.85% were acceptable and 11.88% were not satisfactory according to international standards. Among the food safety indicators sought, Escherichia coli was detected in two samples and Bacillus cereus in four samples. Most of the analyzed food exhibited good hygiene behavior within the acceptable limits and the highest of not satisfactory rate was observed in milk powder and rice with sauce. Ouagadougou samples record the highest number of not satisfactory samples. Despite the general quality was satisfactory, the presence of specific microorganisms such as coliforms is indicative of the poor hygiene surrounded these foods. It is therefore necessary to train and follow up the vendors in the handling of equipment, hand-washing practices and selling environment hygiene for better improvement of the quality of the street foods.