Bacterial contaminations of informally marketed raw milk in Ghana

Background: Milk has an outstanding nutritional quality but is also an excellent medium for bacterial growth and an important source of bacterial infection when consumed without pasteurization. Objective: To estimate the bacterial health risk of milk consumption in Accra and Kumasi, the twomajor cities in Ghana. Method: A total of 96 raw milk samples collected in 2002 from the two sites were cultured and theisolated organisms identified by standard bacteriological methods. Results: Overall, the organisms identified and their prevalence rates were Yersinia spp. (19.8%), Klebsiella spp (16.7%), Proteus spp. (7.3%), Enterobacter spp. (6.3%), Escherichia coli (2.1%), andStaphylococcus spp (14.6%), Bacillus spp. (11.5%) and Mycobacterium spp. (1%). Most of the organisms identified were enterobacteria indicating probable faecal contamination of the milkas a result of poor hygiene. Most of the bacteria identified in the milk sampled are potential foodborne pathogens, and though some of them occurred in few samples, the practice of pooling milk from different sources by traders, and the absence of pasteurization generally observed among them could increase the risk posed by such organisms.Conclusion: The study has shown that informally marketed raw milk in the two cities could be an important source of infection with a wide range of organisms, particularly enterobacteria. There is the need for instituting effective control measures including improved hygienic handling of milk and its pasteurization to protect public h

An epidemiological study of recent outbreaks of Gumboro disease in Ghana

A study to assess the epidemiological factors responsible for the recent outbreaks of infectious bursal disease (IBD) in Accra and Kumasi, between October and December 2002 and January to April 2003, was conducted. Case report records at Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratories were examined for IBD cases. Farm investigations were carried out using a combination of questionnaire and interviews to obtain information on the disease situation on farms, where the outbreaks had occurred. The highest occurrence of the disease was recorded between March and April 2003, with Accra showing the highest number of cases in March, coinciding with the Easter season. Day-old chicks imported into the country succumbed more easily to the disease than those produced locally. There was an association between IBD and the chicken type that was significant (P < 0.05) in cockerels and layers. Chickens vaccinated twice were more likely to be protected from the disease than those not vaccinated or vaccinated only once. The prevalence of the disease was also influenced by the age of the chickens with a rise in susceptibility with age from 3 weeks to 6 weeks old. The results of the study indicate that the factors studied, namely source of day old chicks, bird type, vaccination history, and age of chicks at the time of outbreak influenced outbreaks of IBD and are likely to contribute to the endemicity of infectious bursal disease in the poultry producing areas of Ghana. It is recommended that stringent biosecurity measures be observed on poultry farms to control the disease in the country

Risk of exposure to marketed milk with antimicrobial drug residues in Ghana

The study was carried out to determine the extent to which antimicrobial drugs may be translocated into milk and the associated risk of exposure by consumers. A total of 394 milk samples were collected in the study sites in dry and wet seasons, and from different categories of milk market agents, including producers (farmers), processors, wholesalers (assemblers) and retailers. The milk samples were screened for antimicrobial drug residues using the Charm Aim-96 antimicrobial inhibition assay screening kit. Overall, 35.5% (140/394) of the milk samples collected were contaminated with one or more of the antimicrobial drugs screened. This translates into an average risk of exposure every third time a consumer drinks locally produced milk. There was no significant difference in contamination levels between season and area of sampling. Among market agents, contamination levels ranged from 16.6% (9/54) for wholesalers or milk assemblers to 54.2% (13/24) for milk processors. There were no significant differences in prevalence proportions of drug residues in milk from different types of traders between and within locations

Risk factors in the hygienic quality of milk in Ghana

The study was carried out to identify risk factors associated with bacterial contamination of locally produced raw milk and its adulteration with water. A total of 419 respondents of different categories of milk agents in the study sites were sampled for data and milk collection in the dry and wet seasons. The data collected focused on milk marketing factors and handling practices likely to affect milk quality, while the milk samples were analysed to determine the extent of bacterial contamination and adulteration with water. The proportion of milk samples adulterated was 18%. While 23.5% of the milk samples had unacceptably high total plate count ( > 6.3 log10 cfu/ml), all the samples had unacceptably high coliform plate count ( > 0.7 log10 cfu/ml). Risk factors associated with high bacterial counts were related to milk marketing channels (p < 0.05), milk market agents (p < 0.01), and milk containers (p=0.06) as well as their mode of cleaning (p=0.06). The only risk factor identified for adulteration of milk was related to season (p=0.04)