Microbiological quality of fresh cut fruits in Korea

This study was performed to evaluate the microbiological quality of fresh cut fruits in Korea. Forty freshly cut fruit samples were assessed for aerobic mesophilic count (AM), aerobic psychrophilic count (AP), total coliform, generic Escherichia coli, yeast and mold (YM), Bacillus cereus, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella spp., and E. coli O157:H7. The average value for AM, AP, and YM was 4.51, 5.35, and 4.31 log CFU/g, respectively. The average of the total coliform was 2.42 log CFU/g, and E. coli was not detected in all samples. For foodborne pathogen bacteria, B. cereus and S. aureus were detected in 2.5 and 7.5% samples, respectively, and Salmonella spp. and E. coli O157:H7 were not detected in all samples. Among the samples, pear generally had the highest contamination level. Therefore, to assure the safety of fresh cut fruits, low temperature and thorough hygiene management should be implemented.