Study on microbiological quality of marlin fish balls from several markets in Tanggamus, Lampung

Abstract

The fisheries processing industry in Tanggamus, Lampung, Indonesia is one of the sectors with potential for development. Fishery processing businesses, particularly small and medium enterprises (SMEs) producing marlin fish balls are still commonly found in Tanggamus District; however marlin fish ball producers still do not pay attention to the microbiological quality of the products. This study aimed to obtain data on total plate count (TPC), coliform and Salmonella bacteria in marlin fish balls in several Tanggamus District markets. This study used a simple random sampling method in three markets: Kota Agung Timur market, Madang market, and Wonosobo market. The fish ball samples were tested for TPC, coliform bacteria, and Salmonella. Fish balls from the Madang market had the highest TPC (8.64 105 CFU/g), and those from Wonosobo market the lowest (1.05 105 CFU/g). In addition, for fish ball samples from Kota Agung Timur market and Wonosobo market the coliform test results were <1100 APM/g. Salmonella tests on fish balls from the three markets were negative. Based on the results of this study, it was concluded that the microbiological quality of the marlin fish balls sold in the three markets did not meet SNI standards, presumably because they did not implement a good sanitation system during the production, distribution and sales processes.