Bacteriological Quality of Salads Sold at Selected Restaurants in Accra, Ghana

Background: The increasing prevalence of chronic non-communicable diseases has led to a greater emphasis on the consumption of healthy foods, such as vegetables. Vegetable salads from restaurants are generally perceived as safe. We investigated the bacteriological quality of vegetable salads sold in two popular restaurants in Accra. Methods: Twenty salad samples were purchased from two popular restaurants (A and B) with two branches each in Accra, Ghana. Restaurant A had branches at Dansoman and North Industrial Area, while B had branches at Osu and Tesano. Total aerobic colony forming unit (CFU) and biochemical assays were performed by standard culture techniques and protocols, to determine the microbial load and species present. Results: Mean aerobic bacteria count was 1.77E5 and 1.45 E5 CFU/g for Restaurants A, and B respectively. The North Industrial Area branch of A had more CFUs (2.64E5 CFU/g) than the Dansoman branch (0.9E5 CFU/g), and statistically significant (p=0.0010). The Tesano branch of restaurant B had higher CFUs (1.9E5 CFU/g) than the Osu branch (1.0E5 CFU/g), and also statistically significant (p=0.0022). Furthermore, ANOVA across the four branches showed a significant difference (p<0.0001). The main isolates identified from both restaurants were Enterobacter spp. (28.7%), Citrobacter spp. (20.4%), Klebsiella ssp. (18.5%) and Enterococcus spp. (7.4%). Conclusion: Enterobacter species was predominant among others. Education of the restaurant staff, and the application of food safety and handling procedures must be established, and food regulatory institutions must carry out routine inspection at these sites to ensure consumer protection and public health.