Evaluation of goat milk microflora in farms from Transylvania

Abstract

Mastitis represents the inflammation of the mammary gland and is considered to be a serious disease due to the fact that it leads to the decrease of milk yield, with severe consequences on milk quality, increase of animal culling and therefore major economic losses. The aim of this study was to identify and describe the main microorganisms, as well as analyzing the Colony Forming Units in raw goat milk by collecting samples from 18 dairy goat farms from Transylvania, as follows: 6 farms from Alba County, 6 from Sălaj County and 6 farms from Cluj County. The milk samples were taken twice from each farm, gathering a total of 36 samples. The results showed that among Gram positive bacteria, 63.8% of the total number of samples were positive for Staphylococcus spp., 36.1%, for Micrococcus spp., 25% for Streptococcus spp. and in 19.4% of the milk samples was identified Bacillus spp. Other Gram positive microorganisms were isolated, but with a lower frequency: Kocuria spp. (8.33%), Aerococcus spp. (8.33%), Corynebacteruium spp. (5.55%) and Enterococcus spp. (2.77%). Results regarding the Gram negative bacteria showed that E. coli was the most frequently isolated microorganism, with a percentage of 38.9, followed by Klebsiella spp. with 25%, Hafnia spp. with 11.1%, Aeromonas spp. with 8.33% and Raoultella spp. with 5.55%. Data concerning the total number of germs showed that raw goat milk from the Transylvanian farms included in the study fulfils the hygiene criteria in the legislation.