Numbers of Bacteria in Frozen Food Stored at Several Temperatures

Abstract

Samples of several types of foods, represented by frozen haddock, lamb chop fat, spinach, strawberries, raspberries, and orange juice were stored in small commercial, individually refrigerated containers at[long dash]18[degree],[long dash]12[degree], and[long dash]6.6[degree] C. Bacterial plate counts were made on nutrient agar at intervals during 3 mos. Numbers of bacteria, while originally not high, showed variation, with slight increases in lamb fat and spinach during the 1st mo., and then general reduction. 6 tables giving counts of bacteria for each food and storage temp. are included. The numbers of bacteria found are not be-lieved to be sufficient to cause chemical changes. Greater reductions in numbers at the higher storage temp. were noted in some samples.