Investigation of histamine level and microbiological quality in herby cheeses

2. ABSTRACT Investigation of histamine level and microbiological quality in herby cheeses In this study, histamine contents, pH level and some microbiological characteristics of herby cheeses sold in Van, Siirt, Batman and Diyarbakır provinces were investigated. For this study, 10 herby cheeses from each provinces mentioned above were taken to the laboratory under cold chain and subjected to the analysis as soon as possible. Histamine levels in the cheese samples were detected by ELISA method. Total aerobic colony, Enterobacteriaceae spp., Lactobacillus spp. and yeast-mold counts were analyzed for microbiological characteristics. The results showed that herby cheeses except for those obtained from Van province had ≥3.0 log10 cfu/g Enterobacteriaceae spp., ≥5.4 log10 cfu/g yeast-mold, ≥7.0 log10 cfu/g Lactobacillus spp., ≥6.6 log10 cfu/g total aerobic colony counts, as averagely. The samples obtained from Van province, Enterobacteriaceae spp., yeast-mold, Lactobacillus spp. and total aerobic colony counts were <1, 3.1, 4.6 and 4.5 log10 cfu/g, respectively. Means of pH levels of herby cheeses were between 4.7 and 5.3, depending on provinces. Means of histamine levels of herby cheeses obtained from Van, Siirt, Batman and Diyarbakır were 23.1, 45.5, 42.6, 42.4 mg/100 g. It was observed that there was a correlation in high level between histamine level and aerobic colony count of herby cheese samples (p<0.0005). Similarly, positive correlation between histamine level and lactic acid bacteria was detected (p<0.001). There is no limitation and regulation as regards histamine level, Enterobacteriaceae spp. and yeast-mold counts of cheeses in Turkish Food Codex. However, it was observed that hygienic quality of herby cheese was poor when considering yeast and mold counts, and histamine levels of these cheeses may rise to dangerous levels that could affect human health. Because of that, it would be beneficial to pasteurize milk to be used in making cheese, to apply strict hygienic rules and sanitation rules during processing stages and storage of cheese. Key words: Herby cheese, Histamine, Microbiological quality