Microbiological Evaluation of Organic and Inorganic Vegetables

Abstract

The market of organic produces which are cultivated without insecticide or chemical fertilizer is growing very fast. However, several food poisoning cases are caused by microbiologically contaminated organic vegetables. Therefore the aim of this research is to compare the microbiological contamination level of organic and inorganic vegetables produced in Korea. Each 10 samples of organic and inorganic vegetables (Chicory, Romaine, Red Lettuce, and Red chard) were collected from retail market and submitted to the microbial evaluation. The number of total microbes, Escherichia coli 0157, Salmonella spp., and Staphylococcus aureus were investigated with the standard methods of Food Code in Korea. Statistical analysis of each group was performed using SAS (version 9.1) program. The average number of total microbes and Staphylococcus aureus in organic vegetables were much lower than that of inorganic vegetables (6.91 vs. 6.44; 7.04 vs. 6.89 respectively) but contamination of E. coli 0157 and salmonella spp. were vice versa. Our data may support that organic vegetables are not free from microbiological contamination which can cause food poisoning.