The conformity of milk products to the jordanian standards and safety requirements in alaqaba, jordan (2017- 2018)

Milk products are considered one of the most important consumed foods in Jordan. Because of the spread of adulteration and impurities in milk products that may lead to food poisoning and serious diseases affecting human health, this descriptive experimental study was conducted in Aqaba city in order to assess the conformity of milk products to the Jordanian standard and safety requirements in the period. (2017 - 2016) The data were collected by laboratory investigation of (36) samples of sour cream, cheese, and dry yoghurt, taken from three areas with different economic status. A questionnaire was also used to collect data from (160) households randomly selected from the three areas. In addition, some data were collected from the records of the Aqaba international laboratories (Bin Hayyan) in the period 2014- 2016.The result of the study showed that (16.6%) of the sour cream and dry yoghurt samples violated the Jordanian standard and safety requirements respectively. In the wealthy neighborhood (district of malls), sour cream samples contained vegetable oils, and in the medium wealthy neighborhood sour cream contained Sorbic Acid (98.9 ppm) that are not from their original ingredients. In addition, the dry yoghurt samples from the wealthy neighborhood (district of malls) contained starch, and those from the medium wealth neighborhood contained mold and yeast (2 × 10‏‏‏‏4cuf/g). The result also showed that all tested samples of cheese were in conformity with the Jordanian standard and safety requirements. The data collected through the questionnaire indicated that the majority of households are able to distinguish clean and unclean milk products by appearance, flavor, and smell. They also know of the causes of the spoilage of milk products, the difference between good and spoiled milk products, and the harmful preservatives used in milk products. The study offered some recommendations concerning the importance of investigating the sources of milk products, moving and keeping milk products in refrigerated storage, activating the role of health monitoring on factories of milk products, imposing serious punishments on factories that violate the safety requirements, encouraging future research that concerns promotion of milk products and replacing chemical preservatives with natural ones.