Comparative evaluation of the microbial safety of boiled locally vended ready-to-drink, HTST pasteurized and UHT bovine milk sold in Nakawa Division of Metropolitan Kampala

This study evaluated the microbial safety of vended boiled, pasteurized and UHT milk sold in Nakawa, Kampala-Uganda. 15 milk samples were analyzed; 2 samples had Salmonella, 5 had S. aureus with a count of 1.66+0.02 log10CFU/ml. E. coli was detected in 8 samples with 1.0+0.02 to 3.0+0.01log10CFU/ml count. A high load of 3.0+0.1log10CFU/ml was obtained in 3 samples with E. coli. Four E. coli positive samples had a contamination load of 2.0+0.015log10 CFU/ml of which one was pasteurized milk. Only a pasteurized milk showed a low E. coli load at 1.0+0.02log10 CFU/ml. All UHT milk had no microbial contamination. Both boiled and pasteurized milk had Salmonella, S. aureus and E. coli in levels above the set threshold limits. Milk consumers in Nakawa stand a potential public health risk of food poisoning reflected by presence of Salmonella, S. aureus and E. coli in some milk sold in the area