Monitoring of Microorganism Contamination in Children-Preferred Confectioneries in Korea

According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, USA) recently it was reported that the children (< 5 year-old children) were more susceptible to Foodborne-illness 1) . Confectionery products should be strictly controlled because they are children-preferred foods. Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS, South of Korea) tried to monitor contamination of organisms in confectionery products (such as biscuits, candies, chewing gums and ice candies) distributed in South Korea. MFDS evaluated the levels of indicator organisms: total aerobic bac- teria, coliforms, Escherichia coli as well as the levels of food-borne illness organisms: Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus, Clostridium perfringens. Experimental plans for microbiological test were in accordance with the Interna- tional Commission on Microbiological Specifications for Food (ICMSF). For this study, 1,005 samples were collected and from Seoul and Gyeongin region, South Korea. The average level of total aerobic bacteria in 1,005 samples was 1.7 log Colony Forming Unit(CFU)/g and the detection rate was 26.8%. The average level of Bacillus cereus was detected in 1.7 log CFU/g and the rate was 0.9%. There was no detection of coliforms, Escherichia coli, Staphylococ- cus aureus and Clostridium perfringens. The results of this study will be provided as the basic data to set the reason- able microbiological criteria of Korea Food Code.