Evaluation of microbiological quality of Ice-cream available in Kolkata and its Suburbs

A study was undertaken to enumerate the Microbiological quality of ice-cream available in Kolkata and its Suburbs. 29 samples of ice-cream were collected from sweetmeat shops and street vendors in this locality. The standard plate count of ice-cream samples ranged between 2 ´ 104 and 5.25 ´ 107 c.f.u./gm and the coliform count of ice-cream ranged between 0 and 1.325 ´ 104 c.f.u./gm. Samples of ice-cream showed large number of yeast and mould contaminants ranging from 1.75 ´ 102 to 1.95 ´ 104 c.f.u./gm. In the experiment, psychrotrophic count and staphylococcal count of ice-cream samples ranged from 2.10 ´ 103 to 4.75 ´ 104 c.f.u./gm and from 0.35 ´ 104 to 3.55 ´ 104 c.f.u./gm respectively. The titratable acidity of ice-cream samples ranged from 0.235% to 0.275% lactic acid. Only 2 out of 6 samples fulfilled the PFA (1955) standard and other crossed the limit. Only 21 samples, out of 29 samples met the required fat percentage prescribed by Prevention of Food Adulteration Rules (1976) and only 2 samples from street vendors did not maintain the prescribed standard for total solids percentage given by Prevention of Food Adulteration Rules (1976). We have got mixed results from the investigation, 4 nos. of the samples fulfilled the BIS requirement and twenty-one nos. of samples met the specification for Prevention of Food Adulteration (PFA).