Effect of Hospital Food Handling Stages on the Physicochemical Quality and Microbiological Safety of Red Meat in Sudanese Hospitals

الملخص

This study evaluated the effect of successive hospital food handling stages on the physicochemical quality and microbiological safety of red meat served in selected hospitals in Khartoum State, Sudan. Four hospitals were included, comprising two governmental hospitals and two private hospitals. Meat samples were collected at five consecutive stages of the food handling chain: raw material reception, storage, preparation, processing/cooking, and final display/service. Physicochemical analyses included moisture, crude protein, fat, ash, pH, and titratable acidity. Microbiological analyses included total viable bacterial count, yeast and mould count, total coliforms, and detection of Salmonella spp., Escherichia coli, and Staphylococcus spp.