Bacteriological study of Indian cheese (paneer) sold in Chandigarh.

A study was conducted to isolate and identify bacterial pathogens/contaminants in paneer samples sold in Chandigarh. Fifty eight samples of paneer bought at random were cultured on several media. Bacterial colony counts were also done. The predominant organisms isolated were Staphylococcus species, aerobic spore bearers, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Campylobacter jejuni, Acinetobacter species and Streptococcus species. The viable bacterial counts obtained ranged from 3 x 10(2) to 9.7 x 10(10) CFU/mL. Contamination of paneer by pathogenic bacteria could be an important factor of gastrointestinal illnesses in the consumers.