Microbiological Quality of Commercially Available Ready-to-Eat Meat Street Food Doner Kebab in Colombo District, Sri Lanka

Abstract

Foodborne illnesses are a significant global concern and Doner kebab, a popular street food, which grilled meatloaf renowned for its diverse nutritional composition which is prone to microbial contamination. The present study aimed to determine the microbiological quality of street food, Doner kebab in the Colombo district, Sri Lanka. One hundred fifty (n = 150) Doner kebab samples were purchased randomly from three regions of the Colombo district including Aluthkade, Kibulawala, and Kailiza. The microorganisms were isolated and identified via conventional standard biochemical keys including Indole, MR-VP, Citrate, Motility, TSI, Urease, Bile, Oxidase, and Gram stain. The analysis was obtained from MicrosoftExcell 2010 and SPSS V23.0. Eight pathogenic bacterial species namely; Klebsiella spp. (13%), Pseudomonas spp. (07%), Escherichia coli (20%), Enterobacter aerogenes (20%), Salmonella spp. (20%), Shigella spp. (07%), Vibrio spp. (07%) and Protease spp. (07%) were identified. Among lactose-fermented microorganisms Escherichia coli (37%), Enterobacter aerogenes (25%), and Klebsiella spp. (38%) were detected while among non-lactose fermented microorganisms, highest percentage 44% of Salmonella spp. following equally 14% of Shigella spp., Proteus spp. Vibrio spp. and Pseudomonas spp. were detected. All three regions were contaminated with at least three types of microorganisms. Compared to the Aluthkade, Kalubowila (P = 0.020, p < 0.05), Aluthkade, Kalisa (P = 0.003, p < 0.05) and Kalubowila, Kalisa (P = 0.000, p < 0.05) showed a significant different in contamination. The highest significant Escherichia coli (40%) contamination was detected in Aluthkade while Enterobacter aerogenes (40%) and Salmonella spp. (40%) in Kailiza (p < 0.05) All three regions showed the highest pathogenic contamination thus, implementing measures to reduce the contaminations are important.