Investigation of microbiological safety of dry cat foods marketed in Poland

Joanna Ziętara-Wysocka; Olga Sierawska; Cansel Taskin; Agata Poniewierska-Baran; Dominika Bębnowska; Rafał Hrynkiewicz; Filip Lewandowski; Paulina Niedźwiedzka-Rystwej

doi:10.18388/abp.2020_6921

Joanna Ziętara-Wysocka 1Doctoral School of the University of Szczecin, 70-383 Szczecin, Poland; 2Institute of Biology, University of Szczecin, 71-412 Szczecin, Poland
Olga Sierawska 1Doctoral School of the University of Szczecin, 70-383 Szczecin, Poland; 2Institute of Biology, University of Szczecin, 71-412 Szczecin, Poland
Cansel Taskin Biology Department, Faculty of Science, Ankara University, Ankara 06560, Turkey
Agata Poniewierska-Baran Institute of Biology, University of Szczecin, 71-412 Szczecin, Poland
Dominika Bębnowska Institute of Biology, University of Szczecin, 71-412 Szczecin, Poland
Rafał Hrynkiewicz Institute of Biology, University of Szczecin, 71-412 Szczecin, Poland
Filip Lewandowski Institute of Biology, University of Szczecin, 71-412 Szczecin, Poland
Paulina Niedźwiedzka-Rystwej Institute of Biology, University of Szczecin, 71-412 Szczecin, Poland

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18388/abp.2020_6921

Abstract

Pets are inhabiting more and more human homes every year. In 2020, the cat population in Europe was 110 million, including 6.8 million in Poland. Dry food is the most popular dietary model for cats because of its easy storage and efficient satisfaction of pet needs. The high processing temperature of dry food reduces the chance of microbial contamination, but this can occur later, during post-production or storage in the pet’s caregiver’s home or, in the case of weighed foods, in the store. The purpose of this study was to investigate the microbiological safety of dry feed sold in the original manufacturer’s packaging and the same feed from the same manufacturers sold in a retail store by weight. Six discriminants, presence of Salmonella spp., number of coliforms, number of coagulase-positive staphylococci, determination of yeast and mould counts, Enterobacteriaceae count, Listeria monocytogenes and determination of total aerobic microbial count were used for the analysis. Then, cat food was then stored for 45 days according to the manufacturer’s recommendations. Based on the samples tested both after opening and after storage, it was concluded that the dry cat food analyzed posed a law microbiological risk to animals and humans.