Public Health England Food Water and Environmental Microbiology Services, National Infection Service, London, UK.
Institute of Infection and Global Health, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK.
J Appl Microbiol. 2018 Oct;125(4):1175-1185. doi: 10.1111/jam.13931. Epub 2018 Jul 17.
To investigate the microbiological quality of imported fresh leaves on retail sale during 2017 with respect to Salmonella, Shiga-toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) and levels of E. coli.
Two hundred and seventy-nine samples of imported edible leaves (69 banana, 77 betel, 118 curry and 15 other types) were tested. Salmonella spp. were confirmed by whole-genome sequencing and isolated from 44 samples, 26% from curry leaves, 14% from betel and 2·4% from all other leaf types: 80% of all samples contained ≥10 , 44% ≥10 and 22% ≥10 CFU of E. coli CFU per g. All samples where Salmonella were detected also yielded ≥20 CFU of E. coli/g. 54 samples were tested for STEC which was detected in six samples and isolated from three: one was identified as STEC O157:H7.
This report further highlights an ongoing problem of Salmonella contamination of imported fresh edible leaves.
Among all food tested by Public Health England (approximately 11 000 per annum), curry leaves were the herb most commonly contaminated with Salmonella, and betel leaves were the most commonly contaminated ready-to-eat food. The high proportion with unsatisfactory E. coli levels and the detection of STEC suggests risks of contamination by multiple enteric pathogens.
调查 2017 年零售进口鲜叶的微生物质量，包括沙门氏菌、产志贺毒素大肠杆菌（STEC）和大肠杆菌水平。
检测了 279 份进口食用叶（69 份香蕉叶、77 份槟榔叶、118 份咖喱叶和 15 份其他类型）。通过全基因组测序确认并从 44 份样本中分离出沙门氏菌，咖喱叶中 26%、槟榔叶中 14%、所有其他叶类型中 2.4%：80%的样本中含有≥10 、44%的样本中含有≥10 和 22%的样本中含有≥10 CFU/g 的大肠杆菌 CFU。所有检测到沙门氏菌的样本中大肠杆菌的含量也≥20 CFU/g。检测了 54 份 STEC 样本，在 6 份样本中检出并从 3 份样本中分离出 STEC，其中 1 份被鉴定为 STEC O157：H7。
本报告进一步强调了进口鲜食可食用叶沙门氏菌污染的持续问题。
在英国公共卫生部检测的所有食品中（每年约 11000 份），咖喱叶是受沙门氏菌污染最严重的草药，而槟榔叶是受污染最严重的即食食品。大肠杆菌水平不理想的比例较高，以及 STEC 的检出表明存在多种肠道病原体污染的风险。
