El Mansouri M Ahmed¹, Adil MA Salman²*, Elniema A Mustafa³ and Iman M Hamad⁴

¹Lecturer, Department of Microbiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Bahri
²Professor of Epidemiology, Department of Food Safety and Veterinary Public Health, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Bahri
³Professor of Animal Production Sciences, Department of Food Safety and Veterinary Public Health, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Bahri
⁴Assosciate Professor of Medical Physiology-Department of Physiology-College of Medicine-University of Bahri

*Corresponding Author: Adil MA Salman, Professor of Epidemiology, Department of Food Safety and Veterinary Public Health, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Bahri.

Received: January 21, 2025; Published: February 12, 2025

Abstract

A stratified random study was conducted between 2019 and 2023 across 99 dairy farms in all localities of Khartoum and Gezira States. The primary aim of the study was to detect and enumerate coliform bacteria in raw milk, assess awareness regarding antibiotic residues in raw milk, and evaluate farm cleanliness. A pre-structured questionnaire was utilized to collect data on the area, farm hygiene practices, drug usage, and methods of disposing of antibiotic-contaminated milk. Bacterial isolates were identified using biochemical reactions and sugar fermentation tests. The study revealed that 74 (74.7%) of the investigated farms used antibiotics and antiparasitic. Alarmingly, 96 (97.0%) farms sold milk from cows treated with antibiotics for human consumption. Additionally, 69 (69.7%) dairy workers were unaware of the harmful effects of chemical residues in milk on human health. The average total plate count (TPC) in milk was 2.157 × 10⁵ cfu/ml across the three localities of Khartoum State and 8.45 × 10⁵ cfu/ml in Gezira State. The average most probable number (MPN) for coliforms counts in Khartoum, Bahri, Omdurman and Gezira were 236.49 ± 55.15, 146.00 ± 29.29, 259.23 ± 51.39, and 175.57 ± 14.96, respectively. The prevalence of E. coli in milk samples varied significantly between regions. Positive samples in Khartoum State were 9 (64.3%), 17(80.9%), and 10 (90.9%) in Khartoum, Bahri and Omdurman, respectively, whereas it was found 25 (47.1%) in Gezira State. There was a significant association between the area and the presence of E. coli in milk with p- value .007). The study also highlighted a significant association between regions and the frequency of manure removal with P ≥± 0.05. A chi-square test further showed an insignificant relationship between the area and the TPC in milk. Moreover, a high degree of association was observed between coliform counts and manure disposal practices P ≥± 0.05. In Conclusion, the findings indicate that both coliform counts and TPC in milk from the investigated farms exceeded the internationally accepted limits. This underscores the urgent need for improved farm hygiene practices, proper sanitation of equipment, and strict adherence to national milk safety standards.

Keywords: TPC; Coliforms; Anti-Microbial Residues; Dairy Farms

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Citation

Citation: Adil MA Salman., et al. “Microbiological and Anti-Microbial Quality of Raw Milk Produced in Dairy Farms in Khartoum and Gezira States, Sudan". Acta Scientific Nutritional Health 9.3 (2025): 25-30.

Copyright

Copyright: © 2025 Adil MA Salman., et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.