Microbial Safety of Dried Fish Meat (<i>Kejeik</i>) Produced in Sudan

Abstract

The present study aimed to estimate the microbiological characteristics as well as the safety of traditionally fermented fish product, Kejeik . K ejeik samples were collected from Singah city (Blue Nile) and Kusti city (White Nile), Sudan. These samples were previously prepared from Ijl, Nawk and Garmut fish types. The microbiological analyses indicated that Kejeik products were devoid of any harmful bacteria like Salmonella , Listeria monocytogenes and Escherichia coli O157:H7. The highest count of aerobic bacteria was found in Singa ijl Kejeik (SIK) which was 7.6 × 10 4 cfu/gm. The Enterbacteriaceae isolated from Kejeik samples were identified as Enterobacter cloacae, and their counts in Kejeik prepared from Ijil, Nawk and Garmut fish were 1.09 × 10 4 , 0.93 × 10 5 and 3.5 × 10 4 cfu/gm, respectively. On the other hand, the counts of aerobic bacteria in Kejeik prepared from Ijl, Nawk and Garmut were 7.2 × 10 5 , 4.1 × 10 5 and 3.4 × 10 5 cfu/gm, respectively. The higher aerobic bacterial load of the various Kejeik samples could be due to improper handling and sanitary condition during the preparation and their moisture contents. The Bacillus isolated from Kejeik samples were identified as Bacillus cereus , and the counts of it in Kejeik prepared from Ijl, Nawk and Garmut were 5 × 10 5 , 2.3 × 10 4 and 1.0 × 10 4 cfu/gm, respectively. The fungi isolated from Kejeik samples were identified as Aspergillus niger , Alternaria , and Penicillium . However, fungi counts in Ijl Kejeik , Nawk Kejeik and Garmut Kejeik were 1.6 × 10 4 , 1.6 × 10 4 and 1.2 × 10 4 cfu/gm, respectively. The yeast isolated was identified as Rhodotorula and Cryptococcus laureate , and their counts in Ijl Kejeik and Nawk Kejeik were 0.9 × 10 4 and 0.9 × 10 4 cfu/gm, respectively. The halophlic bacteria found in Kejeik samples could be identified as Kocuria rosea and Streptococcus dysga lactiae .