Assessment of microbial load of some common vegetables among two different socioeconomic groups

Microbiological control is very important in food industry to prevent foodborne diseases. Therefore, the present investigation was undertaken to assess the microbiological quality of fresh vegetables collected from several regions of Ropar, Punjab, India. A total of 36 vegetable samples were collected and examined for their microbial load. Contamination was mainly found in cauliflower, peas, cabbage, and potato. The microbial load in vegetables procured from low economic area was significantly higher in comparison to vegetables from high economic areas. In low economic area maximum total plate count was observed in onion followed by carrot and radish while in high economic area it was recorded in peas followed by potato. Similarly, in low economic area maximum yeast and mold count was recorded in radish, cauliflower while in high economic area maximum yeast and moulds count were recorded in radish, onion and cauliflower, followed by cabbage. Maximum coliform count was observed in low economic areas in cauliflower, followed by onion. Considerable numbers of microbes were also detected in carrot, peas, cabbage and potato in the area. Maximum coliform count in high economic area was recorded in radish followed by carrot. Eshcerichia coli were detected only in onion procured from shops of low economic area. This study demonstrated that vegetables that are sold in the open market are usually having higher microbial load that may represent a risk for human health. Hence, vegetables may act as a reservoir for many microorganisms from which they will be colonized inside these vegetables and infect susceptible host.