Hygiene status of food contact surfaces in public school canteens in the city of Novi Sad, Serbia

Background/Aim. Establishing a food safety control sys-tem is extremely important in preventing diseases associated with foodborne pathogens. The aim of this study was to ex-amine the hygiene status of food contact surfaces and the ap-plication of good hygiene practices by food handlers in school canteens. Methods. A total of 10,366 swabs were tak-en from food contact surfaces, including food handler's hands from public school canteens in Novi Sad, Serbia, over ten years (2008-2017), covering voluntary good hygiene prac-tices and obligatory Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP) implementation periods. Results. Statistically sig-nificant differences (p < 0.05) in aerobic colony counts (ACCs) on surfaces between two examined periods were found. A general positive trend regarding the reduction of microbial contamination of food contact surfaces was ob-served. The percentage of surfaces swabs with ACCs above 2.48 log CFU/cm2 significantly decreased (R2 = 0.453) during the study period, and the percentage of coagulase-positive Staphylococcus in the swabs also decreased, but not significantly (R2 = 0.264), and average annual Enterobacteriaceae counts above the established limit values on surfaces significantly de-creased (R2 = 0.442) over the years. A significantly higher (p < 0.05) percentage of workers' hands harbored ACCs, coagu-lase-positive Staphylococcus, and Enterobacteriaceae above the es-tablished limits than the equipment or work surfaces. Con-clusion. The results obtained showed the proper implemen-tation of good hygiene practices concerning food contact sur-faces, but the implementation of good personal hygiene prac-tices needs enhanced supervision. Uvod/Cilj. Uspostavljanje sistema kontrole bezbednosti je izuzetno važno u prevenciji bolesti povezanih sa patogenima koje se prenose hranom. Cilj ovog istraživanja bio je da se utvrdi higijenski status kontaktnih površina i primena dobre higijenske prakse pri rukovanju hranom u školskim kantinama. Metode. Ukupno 10 366 briseva uzeto je sa površina koje dolaze u kontakt s hranom i ruku osoblja zaposlenog u školskim kantinama u Novom Sadu u desetogodišnjem periodu (2008–2017). Istraživanje je uključivalo dva perioda: a) dobrovoljnu primenu dobre higijenske prakse i b) obaveznu implementaciju sistema Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP). Rezultati. Statistički značajna razlika (p < 0,05) utvrđena je u ukupnom broju aerobnih bakterija (aerobic colony counts -ACCs) na površinama. Primećen je opšti pozitivni trend u pogledu smanjenja mikrobiološke kontaminacije površina koje dolaze u kontakt s namirnicama. Učestalost nalaza briseva sa utvrđenim ukupnim ACCs iznad 2,48 log CFU/cm2 smanjivala se statistički značajno (R2 = 0,453) tokom perioda ispitivanja; učestalost prisustva koagulaza pozitivnih stafilokoka se takođe smanjivala, ali ne statistički značajno (R2 = 0,264), dok se prosečan broj enterobakterija iznad utvrđenih graničnih vrednosti na površinama statistički značajno smanjio tokom godina (R2 = 0,442). Na brisevima ruku ispitanog osoblja utvrđena je statistički značajno viša (p < 0,05) učestalost prisustva ukupnog ACCs, koagulaza pozitivnih stafilokoka i enterobakterija iznad utvrđenih granica u odnosu na briseve uzete sa opreme ili radnih površina. Zaključak. Dobijeni rezultati pokazuju pravilnu primenu dobre higijenske prakse kada su u pitanju površine koje dolaze u kontakt s hranom, dok implementacija prakse dobre lične higijene zaposlenih zahteva pojačan nadzor