Microbial Safety of Street Vended Fruit Juices in Dhaka City of Bangladesh

Freshly squeezed fruit juice is a nutritious drink. Its appealing look and attractive taste make it a popular drink among many different aged people. But the risk due to fresh juice consumption is very important.

Aims: The present study was undertaken to investigate the microbiological quality of freshly squeezed juices and to determine their safety for human consumption.

Place and Duration of Study: This study was conducted in Microbiology Department of Primeasia University, Banani, Dhaka-1213, Bangladesh during February, 2015 to April, 2015.

Methodology: Four types of fruit juices such as Lemon, Sugarcane, Mango, and Papaya juice were collected from Banani, Tejgaon, Mirpur, Badda and Uttara. Total viable bacteria and fungi counts were estimated by using nutrient agar (NA) and Sabouraud’s dextrose agar plates respectively. Pathogenic bacteria were isolated and identified using selective media and various biochemical tests. Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion method on Mueller Hinton agar media was used for the determination of sensitivity of the isolated strains to commonly prescribed antibiotics.

Results: Among all the samples, Lemon juice from Uttara, Sugarcane juice from Mirpur and Uttara and Papaya juice from Tejgaon were of poor quality due to having all five types of pathogenic proliferation of bacteria including Escherichia coli, Klebsiella spp, Staphylococcus spp, Vibrio spp, and Salmonella spp. Ampicillin was found to be the least effective antibiotics against the isolates whereas Nalidixic acid was highly sensitive against klebsiella spp.

Conclusion: The result revealed that most of the samples had high microbial load, and were not suitable for consumption.