Evaluation of the microbial contamination of fresh produces and their cultivation environments from farms in Korea

In this study, a total of 195 samples including fresh produce and farming environments was used to perform the microbial risk assessment. Levels of total aerobic bacteria ranged from 2.77 to 5.99, 6.28 to 7.81, and 1.31 to 2.74 log₁₀ CFU/g, whereas levels of coliforms were ≤ 2.48, ≤ 3.35, and ≤ 0.85 log₁₀ CFU/g, levels of Escherichia coli were ≤ 1.04, ≤ 0.12, and ≤ 1.69 log₁₀ CFU/g in fresh produce, soil, and irrigation water, respectively. When the presence of pathogenic bacteria was detected, only Bacillus cereus and Staphylococcus aureus were isolated from 14 (7.2%) and 7 (3.6%) samples out of 195 samples, respectively. From the results, it was difficult to find a strong correlation between microbial contamination of fresh produce and their farming environments. However, continuous monitoring of agricultural products and related environments should be undertaken in order to ensure the microbial safety of fresh produce.