What is Microbiology Testing Section?
1. Non-food and/or food Microbiology testing functions to determine the adherence to Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) methods and to evaluate knowledge, attitudes, and practices of food‐services staff with regard to food hygiene at any stage of food production or food supply chain.
2. Microbiology testing should be viewed as a means of verifying that HACCP controls are working as intended.
Why Microbiology Testing?
1. We are as healthy as the hygiene of what we take in……..or apply……….. on our bodies/hair.
2. Our business connections— by verification of the working of our HACCP controls, the Microbiology Testing Section opens up the gates and borders locally, regionally and internationally for our products.
Role of Microbiology Testing in food and non food production and supply chain
1. Non-food and/or food testing provides an invaluable tool for management organs of the food production and food supply chains companies or institutions at all levels of food production and supply chain.
2. Key to effectively using microbiological test data is the establishment of a systematic program of testing of microbial load of products at critical stage of production line and the microbial load of the environment in which these products are processed, produced, stored and transported.
Range of services provided by the Microbiology Testing Section
Products tested cover:
1. Food
2. Animal Feeds
3. Water
4. Carbonated and non carbonated soft drinks
5. Cosmetics, lotions and hair dressers
6. Sterility checks
7. Hygiene products e.g female pads, toilet papers, paper towels
8. Environmental swabbing
9. Water purification units
RANGE OF TESTS PROVIDED BY THE MICROBIOLOGY TESTING SECTION
Rwanda Bureau of Standards Microbiology Testing Section provides a wide range of Microbiology Testing covering:
i. Pathogens by detection
ii. Enumeration testing for:
iii. Total viable count
iv. Hygiene indicator organisms
v. Spoilage indicator organisms
vi. Pathogens
vii. Environmental swabbing and
viii. Sub-contraction services
CURRENT SCOPE OF TESTS PROVIDEDED IN MICROBIOLOGY TESTING SECTION:
1. Total Viable Count at 22oC
2. Total Viable Count at 37oC
3. Total coliforms
4. E. coli
5. Yeasts
6. Moulds
7. Intestinal enterococci
8. Salmonella
9. Coag. Pos. Staph: S. aureus and other species
10. Pseudomonus aeruginosa
11. Spores of sulfite reducing anaerobes (Clostridia)
12. Vegetative sulfite reducing anaerobes (Clostridia)
13. Enterobacteriacae Enumeration at 37oC or 30o
14. Shigella Species
15. Vibrio cholerae and V. parahaemolyticus
16. Listeria Spp
17. Listeria monocytogens
What is exciting in the Microbiology Testing Section?
The Section takes all measures to ensure it offers a range of tests that are of quality, reliable and uncontestable. As part of Laboratory quality requirement, the section, participates in proficiency tests in order to gain confidence in our equipment performance, test methods and staff to ensure delivery of quality results demanded by our customer. The section is provided with proficient tests by experienced and accredited PT provider FAPAS since 1990. The section has excelled in all rounds it has participated in. This shows that:
i) Various factors like the staff of the section, accommodation and environment, equipments and materials, test methods, organization and coordination, timeliness of test reports, … etc are under control.
ii) The precision and accuracy of test results from the section are under constant monitoring and evaluation.
iii) Under consideration is accreditation of our services against the ISO/IEC 17025: 2005—the general requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories.
All this is done to ensure the section’s test reports give a valid picture and judgment of the manufacturing practices, knowledge and attitudes of the food services staff.
The scope of the section is constantly revised to cover more and more tests. For further inquires, concern, questions, etc email us at info@rbs.org.rw.
Prepared by KAYIRANGA Pascal
Head Microbiology Testing Section
