Analysis of microbial growth in a fermented sausage and risk evaluation of its production

Sammanfattning: Fermentation has been used to enhance safety of foods and prolong its shelf lives for a long time. The fermentation was originally a result of spontaneous fermentation by microbes naturally present in the food, it is currently done by addition of known bac-teria in a starter culture. Outbreaks of foodborne illness have frequently been associated with foods con-taining meat. To reduce health risks and control the production, implementation of hazard analysis critical control point (HACCP) can be of use. This project is performed on a fermented sausage called isterband is divided into two parts; 1. The microbiological analysis of the batter and sausage when exposed to different environments and 2. The preventing and preparational steps included in the HACCP. Microbial analyses were performed by measuring pH both at the production site and in the laboratory. Isolation of starter culture, pathogenic indicators and total aerobic count was performed using agar plates followed by confirmation with MALDI-TOF MS. The used starter culture showed some differences in growth between different batches. Measurements of pH in the sausages and batter gave similar values and de-crease in pH, with some deviations. Growth of non-starter bacteria was found in bat-ter but not in any of the sausages indicating a sufficient antimicrobial effect. Development of HACCP resulted in recommendation for changes in the current HACCP for the company. Removal of the one existing CCP was the main change but also recommendation for change in routines in the production.