Bacterial contamination of Salmonella spp. and Escherichia coli (Migula, 1895) in fresh chicken meat and chicken-based street food sold in the City of Mati
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Published
Apr 20, 2026
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Analou D. Dedal
Bernadette J. Nanual
Glory P. Miranda
Angelika A. Placencia
Jeira Salvy A. Repe
Queezel Mae M. Quiroga
Abstract
The increasing popularity of chicken-based street food among low-to-middle-income consumers in the City of Mati, Davao Oriental, Philippines, raises serious health concerns due to the potential risk of foodborne illnesses. Despite rising poultry consumption, microbial assessment of street-vended chicken products is not routinely conducted, creating a significant knowledge gap in local food safety monitoring. This study aimed to determine the presence of Salmonella spp. in fresh chicken meat and isaw and Escherichia coli (Migula, 1895) in fried chicken, “isaw,” and “kwek-kwek” sold by randomly selected street vendors. Samples were collected using standard aseptic techniques. Salmonella Shigella agar and Eosin methylene blue (EMB) agar were used to identify the target bacteria. The most probable number (MPN) method, based on Department of Agriculture-National Meat Inspection Service (DA-NMIS) Circular No. 9-2008-5, was used to detect the presence of E. coli in fresh chicken meat. Total plate count (TPC) was used to detect the presence of Salmonella spp. in fresh chicken meat and isaw and to detect E. coli in fried chicken, “isaw,” and “kwek-kwek,” following standards set by DA-NMIS and the Department of Health-Food and Drugs Administration (DOH-FDA) Circular No. 2022-12-2. The results showed Salmonella spp. in all fresh chicken and “isaw” samples, exceeding the DA-NMIS absence requirement in 25 g. Escherichia coli in fresh chicken meat was within the 500 MPN g-1 limit. However, TPC values in fried chicken, “isaw,” and “kwek-kwek” exceeded the 100 CFU g-1 DOH-FDA limit. These findings revealed significant bacterial contamination in fresh chicken meat and popular chicken-based street foods, underscoring the urgent need for stronger implementation of regulation, regular microbial monitoring, and food safety education to support local public health efforts and guide future policy enhancement.
How to Cite
Dedal AD, Nanual BJ, Miranda GP, Placencia AA, Repe JSA, Quiroga QMM. 2026. Bacterial contamination of Salmonella spp. and Escherichia coli (Migula, 1895) in fresh chicken meat and chicken-based street food sold in the City of Mati. The Palawan Scientist. 18(1):142–150. https://doi.org/10.69721/TPS.J.2026.18.1.15.
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Keywords
bacterial load, food hygiene, food safety, health risk, microbial limit, street food
References
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Marquez CAO and Bureros KJC. 2022. Pathogen and pesticide contamination in cabbage grown from, Dalaguete, Cebu, Philippines. The Palawan Scientist. 14(1): 51-57. https://doi.org/10.69721/TPS.J.2022.14.1.06
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Thames HT, Sukumaran AT. 2020. A review of Salmonella and Campylobacter in broiler meat: emerging challenges and food safety measures. Foods. 9(6):776. https://doi.org/10.3390/foods9060776
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Azanza MPV, Membrebe BNQ, Sanchez RGR, Estilo EEC, Dollete UGM, Feliciano RJ, Garcia NKA. 2019. Foodborne disease outbreaks in the Philippines (2005-2018). Philippine Journal of Science. 148(2):317-336.
Beniwal N, Mogra R. 2023. A study on street food consumption among college students. The Pharma Innovation International Journal. 12(6):3980–3985.
Bhaisare DB, Thyagarajan D, Churchil RR, Punniamurthy N. (2014). Bacterial pathogens in chicken meat: Review. International Journal of Life Sciences Research. 2(3):1-7.
Birgen BJ, Njue LG, Kaindi DM, Ogutu FO, Owade JO. 2020. Determinants of microbial contamination of street-vended chicken products sold in Nairobi County, Kenya. International Journal of Food Science. 2020:746492. https://doi.org/10.1155/2020/2746492
Blodgett R. 2020. BAM appendix 2: most probable number from serial dilutions. Silver Spring (MD): U.S. Food and Drug Administration. [accessed 2023 Nov 5]. https://web.archive.org/web/20210507005410/https://www.fda.gov/food/laboratory-methods-food/bam-appendix-2-most-probable-number-serial-dilutions
Capuccino J, Sherman N. 2013. Microbiology: A laboratory manual. (10th ed.). Boston (MA): Pearson
Chang, FS, Chu CH, Shahril AM. 2020. Consumer’s perception towards street food in Malaysia. EPRA International Journal of Research and Development. 5(2):343–352. https://doi.org/10.36713/epra2016
Costa R. 2013. Escherichia coli in seafood: a brief overview. Advances in Bioscience and Biotechnology. 4(3A):450-454. https://doi.org/10.4236/abb.2013.43A060
DA-BAR (Department of Agriculture-Bureau of Agricultural Research). 2022. The Philippine poultry broiler industry roadmap [Internet]. Quezon City (Philippines): Department of Agriculture- Bureau of Agricultural Research. [accessed 2025 Sep 21]. https://www.da.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Philippine-Poultry-Broiler-Industry-Roadmap.pdf
Dagalea FM, Lim KM, Vicencio MC, Ballicud JJ, Burac MR, Vibar JJ, Villadolid VB. 2021. Are street foods safe: detection of Escherichia coli in street foods sauces. South Asian Journal of Research in Microbiology. 9(3):41–45. https://doi.org/10.9734/sajrm/2021/v9i330212
DA-NMIS (Department of Agriculture-National Meat Inspection Service). 2008. Guidelines on the Assessment of Microbiological Quality of Fresh, Chilled and Frozen Meat [memorandum]. Diliman, Quezon City: Department of Agriculture Report No.: 9-2008–5. [accessed 2023 Oct 10]. https://nmis.gov.ph/images/pdf/mc-09-2008-05.pdf
DOH-FDA (Department of Health-Food and Drug Administration). 2022. Guidelines on the Microbiological Requirements and Assessment of Certain Prepackaged Processed Food Products Repealing FDA Circular No. 2013-010 entitled “Revised Guidelines for the Assessment of Microbiological Quality of Processed Foods. Muntinlupa, Philippines: Food and Drug Administration Report No.: 2022– 012. [accessed 2023 Oct 10]. https://www.fda.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/FDA-Circular-No.2022-12-2.pdf
Elumba ZS, Allera ML, Taganas RR. 2018. Occurrence and antibiotic sensitivity of Escherichia coli and Salmonella spp. in retail chicken meat at selected markets in Valencia City, Bukidnon, Philippines. Asian Journal of Biological and Life Sciences. 7(2):53–58. https://doi.org/10.5530/ajbls.2018.7.4
FDA (Food and Drug Administration). 2021. BAM Chapter 3: aerobic plate count [Internet]. Silver Spring (MD): U.S. Food and Drug Administration. [accessed 2023 Oct 5]. https://www.fda.gov/food/laboratory-methods-food/bam-chapter-3-aerobic-plate-count
FSIS-USDA (Food Safety and Inspection Service - U.S Department of Agriculture). 2021. Industry guideline for minimizing the risk of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (stec) in raw beef (including veal) processing operations [Internet]. Washington (DC): U.S. Department of Agriculture. [accessed 2023 Oct 5]. https://www.fsis.usda.gov/sites/default/files/media_file/2021-08/FSIS-GD-2021-0007.pdf
Ishii S, Sadowsky M. 2008. Escherichia coli in the environment: implications for water quality and human health. Microbes and Environments. 23(2):101-8. https://doi: 10.1264/jsme2.23.101
Li H, Gänzle M. 2016. Some like it hot: heat resistance of Escherichia coli in food. Front Microbiology. 7:1763. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2016.01763
Manguiat LS, Fang TJ. 2013. Microbiological quality of chicken- and pork-based street- vended foods from Taichung, Taiwan, and Laguna, Philippines. Food Microbiology. 36(1):57–62. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fm.2013.04.005
Marquez CAO and Bureros KJC. 2022. Pathogen and pesticide contamination in cabbage grown from, Dalaguete, Cebu, Philippines. The Palawan Scientist. 14(1): 51-57. https://doi.org/10.69721/TPS.J.2022.14.1.06
Moloi M, Lenetha GG, Malebo NJ. 2021. Microbial levels on street foods and food preparation surfaces in Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality. Health SA Gesondheid [Internet]. 26:1407. https://doi.org/10.4102/hsag.v26i0.1407
Rouger A, Tresse O, Zagorec M. 2017. Bacterial contaminants of poultry meat: sources, species, and dynamics. Microorganisms. 5(3):50. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms5030050.
Sapkota A. 2021. Serial dilution- definition, formula, calculator, procedure, uses. Microbe Notes [Internet]. [accessed 2023 Oct 5]. https://microbenotes.com/serial-dilution/
Tacardon ER, Ong AK, Gumasing MJ. 2023. The perception of food quality and food value among the purchasing intentions of street foods in the capital of the Philippines. Sustainability. 15(16):12549. https://doi.org/10.3390/su151612549
Thames HT, Sukumaran AT. 2020. A review of Salmonella and Campylobacter in broiler meat: emerging challenges and food safety measures. Foods. 9(6):776. https://doi.org/10.3390/foods9060776
Van Elsas JD, Semenov AV, Costa R, Trevors JT. 2011. Survival of Escherichia coli in the environment: fundamental and public health aspects. International Society for Microbial Ecology. 5(2):173-183. https://doi.org/10.1038/ismej.2010.187
Wang X -T, Xiao S-D, Ma, B-G. 2021. Molecular responses to heat stress in Escherichia coli. In: Stress: genetics, epigenetics and genomics. 4:289–296. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-813156-5.00028-5
Wang Z, Zhu T, Chen Z, Meng J, Simpson DJ, Gänzle MG. 2021. Genetic determinants of stress resistance in desiccated Salmonella enterica. Applied and Environmental Microbiology. 87(23):e01683-21. https://doi.org/10.1128/aem.01683-21
Wardhana DK, Haskito AE, Purnama MT, Safitri DA, Annisa S. 2021. Detection of microbial contamination in chicken meat from local markets in Surabaya, East Java, Indonesia. Veterinary World. 14(12):3138–3143. https://doi.org/10.14202/vetworld.2021.3138-3143
Werner A. 2023. How to do serial dilutions (including calculations). INTEGRA. [accessed 2023 Oct 5]. https://www.integra-biosciences.com/global/en/blog/article/how-do-serial-dilutions-including-calculations
WHO (World Health Organization). 2015. WHO’s first ever global estimates of foodborne diseases find children under 5 account for almost one third of deaths. World Health Organization. [accessed 2023 Oct 5]. https://www.who.int/news/item/03-12-2015-who-s-first-ever-global-estimates-of-foodborne-diseases-find-children-under-5-account-for-almost-one-third-of-deaths.
WHO (World Health Organization). 2018. E. coli. World Health Organization. [accessed 2023 Oct 5]. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/e-coli
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