Survey of the Microbiological Quality of Whole, Black Pepper and Turmeric Powder Sold in Retail Shops in Bombay

Abstract

Microbiological analysis of loosely packed, whole, black pepper and turmeric powder obtained from retail shops in the city of Bombay revealed that the samples of both spices were highly contaminated. Aerobic plate counts of black pepper ranged from 12.1 × 107 to 81.9 × 108 c.f.u. per gram and turmeric powder from 4.1 × 107 to 73.6 × 108 c.f.u. per g. In both spices, mesophilic sporeformers like Bacillus occurred. Coliforms ranged in counts from 102-103 per g. Fungal counts ranged from 0.6 × 104 to 16 × 105 per g for black pepper and from 0.5 × 103 to 11.1 × 105 per g for turmeric powder. Fungal flora included mainly Aspergillus spp. with the occurrence of Mucor in some of the samples. No other organisms were observed in the dilutions plated. The extent of contamination was slightly greater in pepper than in turmeric, although both spices were of a poor quality when compared with international standards.