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Copyright @ Pol J Cosmetol
Pol J Cosmetol 2009, 12(4): 251-266pl,en  Microbiological evaluation of production environment in the cosmetic industryAgata Stobnicka, Małgorzata Gniewosz Katedra Biotechnologii, Mikrobiologii i Oceny Żywności, Szkoła Główna Gospodarstwa Wiejskiego w Warszawie Summary Introduction. Purity of production environment in the cosmetic industry is one of the fundamental factors having an impact on the quality of the end product. Processes of producing cosmetic confectionery are exposed to microbiological contamination, which originates from the environment of the production process. Microbes from those sources may become causative agents of primary infections of the end product which contribute to a significant deterioration of product quality and to resultant economic losses incurred by the producer and, finally, pose risk to the customers´ health. Aim. Determination of a contamination level in rooms of a production and identification of the isolated microbes (12-month inspection) in a cosmetic production plant, which manufactures typical cosmetic products, i.e. creams, cleansing milks, lotions, gels, skin tonics etc. Materials and methods. The experimental material were samples of air collected with a collision method, samples from flat surfaces collected with an imprint method, samples from curved surfaces collected with a swab method and samples from workers´ hands collected with an imprint method. The isolated microbes were identified with biochemical methods (API test, chromogenic culture media) and immunological tests (agglutination test). Results. In the summer months a higher number of microorganisms was observed in 1 m3 of air than in the winter ones. The highest contamination with moulds was observed after the one-month break in production. The most contaminated areas turned out to be rooms of the weighing unit and the washing unit. Over the whole experimental period, results of the microbiological inspection of all masses and finished products did not exceed permissible values. Conclusions. The season of year, dustiness of facilities, motion of workers, temperature and humidity affected the microbiological contamination of rooms. Air movement and dustiness were the reasons behind a higher level of air contamination with microbes. A lower number of microorganisms in the air was observed in the rooms with a low temperature. In turn, a higher level of the microbiological contamination was observed in the humid rooms. The working conditions were observed not to affect the cleanness of workers´ hands. Microbes identified in the samples examined were found typical of particular environments. The contamination of air did not have any influence on the purity of the finished products. Key words: cosmetic industry, production environment, cosmetics microbiology, identification of microorganisms |