Occurrence of Salmonella and Shigella on Dried Crayfish (Procambarus Clarkia) Sold in Zaria and Kaduna Central Market, Kaduna State, Nigeria

Dried crayfish is a rich source of protein and an important crustacean consumed all over the world.To determine the occurrence of Salmonella and Shigella in dried crayfish and crayfish sellers practices which may predispose the food item to microbial contamination, dried crayfish were sampled from 100 stalls in Samaru (n=20), Sabo (n=30) and Central market (n=50) markets of Kaduna state. Dried crayfish samples were each homogenized, analyzed for total coliform plate count, then pre-enriched and enriched in peptone water and Rappaport-Vassiliadis broth respectively, which was further cultured on Salmonella Shigella Agar (SSA). Non-lactose fermenting colonies were subjected to biochemical and Sugar tests. The overall mean coliform count was 14.95log10cfu/100ml. Salmonella and Shigella species were isolated from 12 (35.3%) and 5 (14.3%) samples respectively. Locational distribution of dried crayfish showed, Sabon gari (13.3%) and Central market Kaduna (6%) having the highest occurrence of Salmonella and Shigella suspect species respectively. Questionnaire survey administered to 100 of the crayfish sellers revealed that most of them 71 (74%) eat uncooked dried crayfish, 39% (44/100) of them use their bare hands unwashed while packaging the crayfish at point of sale. The presence of Salmonella and Shigella in crayfish from these locations is of public health significance. Therefore, public enlightenment on hygiene, sanitation and proper storage and packaging of crayfish to prevent foodborne disease outbreak such as Salmonellosis and Shigellosis in Nigeria is highly advocated. Key words: Crayfish, Salmonella, Shigella, food contamination and hygiene