Preliminary screening and microbiological evaluation on the environmental hygiene for galley equipment, safety equipment and cabin common facilities of a local airline in Malaysia
Over the last two decades, only a handful of research have been conducted pertaining to food safety in the aviation industry. The gap of knowledge in in-flight food safety literature has long been silenced. Therefore, it was the objective of this study to conduct preliminary screenings to evaluat...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Rynnye Lyan Resources
2022
|
| Online Access: | http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/102851/ http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/102851/1/102851.pdf |
| Summary: | Over the last two decades, only a handful of research have been conducted pertaining to
food safety in the aviation industry. The gap of knowledge in in-flight food safety
literature has long been silenced. Therefore, it was the objective of this study to conduct
preliminary screenings to evaluate the environmental quality of the service equipment
(GE), safety equipment (SE) and common facilities (CF) within the confinement of
commercial aeroplanes in Malaysia. A total of 112 swab samples (n = 112) were analyzed
to detect the prevalence of Escherichia coli, Vibrio, Salmonella and coliforms using
conventional microbiological methods. The qualitative aerobic mesophilic plate count
revealed that 99 (88.39%) and 13 (11.61%) were reported as positive and negative
samples, respectively. It was reported that all 17 samples taken from the long-haul flight
were positive, with 8 (9.14%), 4 (3.57%) and 5 (4.46%) samples belonging to the GE, SE,
and CF, respectively. Forty-five positive swab samples taken from medium-haul flight
sectors showed that 30 (26.79%), 8 (9.14%), 7 (6.25%) samples were that of the GE, SE,
and CF, respectively. Meanwhile, 19 (16.96%), 8 (9.14%), and 10 (8.93%) of the shorthaul flights samples were that of the GE, SE, and CF, respectively. It was therefore
concluded that GE, SE and CF were reported at 57 (50.89%), 20 (17.86%) and 22
(19.64%), respectively. In view of the large numbers and high percentages of positive
sample results, it is our opinion that the cleaning, sanitizing and disinfecting procedures of
the galley equipment, safety equipment and common facilities are revisited. The assurance
in conformance to the hazard analysis and critical control points (HACCP) management
system may enhance the safety and reliability of all stakeholders especially the flight
attendants who are the final custodians of the environmental hygiene and that of
themselves. |
|---|