Microbial Safety and Antimicrobial Resistance Patterns of Popular Street Foods in Gopalganj, Bangladesh

Street-vended foods offer affordable nutrition in underdeveloped nations but are often contaminated and linked to antimicrobial-resistant microorganisms. This study evaluated the microbiological quality and antimicrobial profiles of bacteria isolated from street foods in Bangladesh. A total of 650 samples of Singara, Puri, Alur Chop, Fuchka, and Samucha were collected across diverse urban sampling sites. Standard ISO methods were used for total viable counts (TVCs) and isolating Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Salmonella spp., and Shigella spp. Antibiotic susceptibility was assessed by disc diffusion. Multidrug resistance (MDR) was defined as resistance to three or more antibiotic classes, and the Multiple Antibiotic Resistance (MAR) index was calculated to evaluate antibiotic exposure risk. All food samples exceeded the acceptable TVC limit. The highest contamination occurred in certain sampling locations with mean TVC values of 7.67 and 7.20 log₁₀ CFU/g, respectively. S. aureus and E. coli were most prevalent in Alur Chop and Fuchka, while Shigella spp. occurred less frequently, and no Salmonella spp. was detected. Widespread antimicrobial resistance was observed in S. aureus and E. coli, exceeding 90% for Ampicillin and Imipenem, and remaining high for Ciprofloxacin and Erythromycin. Shigella spp. showed lower resistance but notable nonsusceptibility to Ampicillin and Tetracycline. Logistic regression identified bacterial species and sampling location as significant predictors of MDR. MAR index analysis revealed pronounced antibiotic selection pressure within a specific sampling location, while Shigella spp. showed lower MAR values. Gopalganj street food-vendors exhibit poor hygienic practices with high multidrug resistant bacterial levels in foods, underscoring the need for better hygiene practices and antibiotic stewardship.