Identification of bacteria species among Enterobacteriaceae found in confectionery cakes

Abstract

The goal of this research was to identify which Enterobacteriaceae species are present in cakes from confectionery establishments and whether these are species that can be considered pathogenic for humans and what their harmful impact on human health could be. The sampling of confectionery cakes was carried out in the area of the City of Zagreb, and the samples were analysed for the presence of Enterobacteriaceae in accordance with the HRN ISO 21528-2:2017 standard. In cases where the samples contained the number of Enterobacteriaceae greater than 102 CFU/g, the MALDI-TOF method was used to identify individual species of enterobacteria. The results of the analyses determined the presence of 10 Enterobacteriaceae species: Enterobacter kobei, Enterobacter cloacae, Pantoea agglomerans, Serratia liquefaciens, Enterobacter asburiae, Klebsiella oxytoca, Buttiauxella gaviniae, Buttiauxella warmboldiae, Raoultella and Cedecea neteri. All species of Enterobacteriaceae determined in this research, according to the literature, were previously isolated from food or water, and all species except Buttiauxella warmboldiae were isolated from humans and the environment. However, for none of the species of Enterobacteriaceae determined in this research a literature reference to support food as a vehicle in case of human illness was found.