This study was conducted to evaluate the quality of raw cow milk at the farm level which considered the first step for production of safe and high quality milk. A total of 150 raw cow milk samples were collected from governmental and private farms at Alexandria Governorate, Egypt. The samples were analyzed for bacteriological properties. The mean values of TBC, coliforms ,Staphylococcus aureus and Aeromonas hydrophila count in positive samples were 3.22 × 104 ± 7.28 × 103, 1.4 × 103 ± 3.9 × 102, 5.26 ×102 ± 8.1 × 10 and 6.4 ×10 ± 1.3 × 10 in examined raw cow milk collected from governmental farms while the respective counts in raw cow milk collected from private farms were 1.51 × 105 ± 2.59 × 104, 3.28 × 102 ± 4.7 × 10, 2.95 × 102 ± 7.7 × 10 and 6.8 ×10 ± 4.1 × 10. Also prevalence of some pathogens as E. coli ,Salmonellae and Yersinia enterocolitica organisms were detected .The hygienic as well as the public health significance of raw milk were discussed.
Key words: raw cow milk, dairy farms, milk quality, microbiological properties.
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