Recently, the purchase of fresh-cut produce and meal kits has increased. Ready-to-eat (RTE) fresh-cut products have potentially hazard of cross-contamination of various microorganisms in the processes of peeling, slicing, dicing, and shredding. There are frequent cases of protozoa food poisoning, such as Cyclospora and Cryptosporidium, caused by fresh-cut products. The objective of the study is to investigate the microbiological qualities of various types of RTE fresh-cut products in the domestic on/offline markets. RTE fresh-cut fruits cup (n=100), fresh-cut vegetables (n=50), and vegetables in meal kits (Vietnamese spring rolls and white radish rolls kits, n=50) were seasonally analyzed. The contamination levels of hygienic indicator organisms, yeast and mold (YM), and foodborne pathogens (Bacillus cereus, Staphylococcus aureus, Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella spp., and Escherichia coli O157:H7) were monitored. Overall, the lowest microbiological qualities of meal kits vegetables were observed, followed by RTE fresh-cut fruits cup and fresh-cut vegetables. Contamination levels of total aerobic bacteria, coliforms, and YM in meal kits vegetables were 5.91, 3.90, and 4.71 logs CFU/g, respectively. From the qualitative analysis, 6 out of 200 RTE fresh-cut products (3%) returned positive result for S. aureus. From the quantitative analysis, the contamination levels of S. aureus in purple cabbage from a meal-kit and fresh-cut pineapple were below the acceptable limit (100 CFU/g). Staphylococcus enterotoxin seg and sei genes were detected in RTE fresh-cut celery and red cabbage from meal-kits, respectively. S. aureus contamination must be carefully controlled during the manufacturing processes of RTE fresh-cut products. Neither Cyclospora cayetanensis nor Cryptosporidium parvum was detected in the samples of RTE fresh-cut products and vegetables from meal-kits from the Korean retail markets.

ABSTRACT
Materials and Methods
    실험 재료
    위생지표 세균의 정량분석
    병원성 식중독균의 분석
    황색포도상구균(Staphylococcus aureus) 정성 및 정량분석
    바실러스 세레우스(Bacillus cereus) 정성분석
    살모넬라(Salmonella spp.) 정성분석
    리스테리아(Listeria monocytogenes) 정성분석
    장출혈성 대장균(Enterohemorrhagic E. coli) 정성분석
    원포자충(Cyclospora cayetanesis) 오염분석
    작은와포자충(Cryptosporidium parvum) 오염분석
Results and Discussion
    신선편의 절단 과일 및 채소류에서 위생지표세균의 오염 수준
    병원성 식중독균의 오염현황
    원포자충 및 작은 와포자충 오염현황
Acknowledgement
국문요약
Conflict of interests
ORCID
References

• 전지혜(경희대학교 식품영양학과) | Ji Hye Jeon (Department of Food and Nutrition, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Korea)
• 노준혜(경희대학교 식품영양학과) | Jun Hye Roh (Department of Food and Nutrition, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Korea)
• 이채림(경희대학교 식품영양학과) | Chae Lim Lee (Department of Food and Nutrition, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Korea)
• 김근향(경희대학교 식품영양학과) | Geun Hyang Kim (Department of Food and Nutrition, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Korea)
• 이정연(경희대학교 식품영양학과) | Jeong Yeon Lee (Department of Food and Nutrition, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Korea)
• 윤기선(경희대학교 식품영양학과) | Ki Sun Yoon (Department of Food and Nutrition, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Korea) Corresponding author