A solar drying was investigated as one of perspective techniques for fish processing in Cambodia. The solar drying was compared to conventional drying in electric oven. Five typical Cambodian fish species were selected for this study. Mean solar drying temperature and drying air relative humidity were 55.6°C and 19.9%, respectively. The overall solar dryer efficiency was 12.37%, which is typical for natural convection solar dryers. An average evaporative capacity of solar dryer was 0.049 kg·h−1. Based on coefficient of determination (R 2), chi-square (χ 2) test, and root-mean-square error (RMSE), the most suitable models describing natural convection solar drying kinetics were Logarithmic model, Diffusion approximate model, and Two-term model for climbing perch and Nile tilapia, swamp eel and walking catfish and Channa fish, respectively. In case of electric oven drying, the Modified Page 1 model shows the best results for all investigated fish species except Channa fish where the two-term model is the best one. Sensory evaluation shows that most preferable fish is climbing perch, followed by Nile tilapia and walking catfish. This study brings new knowledge about drying kinetics of fresh water fish species in Cambodia and confirms the solar drying as acceptable technology for fish processing.

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Fermented vegetables are common part of Cambodian diet. The food safety status for these foods has not been investigated. This study was conducted to evaluate the microbiological hazards that contaminated fermented vegetables. A total of 68 samples of fermented vegetables were purchased randomly from five wet markets in Phnom Penh. The conventional culture methods for microbiological analysis were used. Coliform bacteria Escherichia coli, Cronobactersakazakii, and Enterobacter spp. , opportunistic non-Entrobacteriaceae, Enterococcus spp., Staphylococcus spp., and Listeria spp. were found in these fermented foods. The highest contamination rate of Enterococcus spp. was 34% of total fermented vegetable samples, followed by Bacillus spp. coliform bacteria and E. coli 31%, 24% and 10%, respectively . The potential foodborne pathogen, C. sakazakii, was identified in one sample. Fermented mixed vegetables showed higher contamination rate of coliform bacteria 50% than fermented single-type vegetables 13% . The results showed that fermented vegetables sold in wet market are poor in hygiene. The stage in the processing chain where contamination occurred should be identified and basic sanitary practice should be enforced to improve the food safety of fermented vegetables in Cambodia.

Raw beef is a food product that contains variety of proteins that provide good energy and other nutrients for supporting human health. However, this kind of meat is very easy to be spoiled by microorganism, which seriously affects the consumer's health. In addition, in most case, raw beef is popularly consumed raw or lightly cooked, so the level of microbial contamination is high. Interestingly, samples of raw beefs from three supermarkets were taken to be analyzed and evaluated in this study. This study was designed to (i) determine the presence of foodborne pathogens in raw beef; (ii) compare the prevalence of microbial contamination among the three supermarkets; and (iii) evaluate the sanitary quality of raw beef products. Also, six kind of microorganisms including Total Plate Count, Total Coliform and Fecal Coliform, which represented sanitary quality; and E. coli, S. aureus, and B.cereus, which determined the presence of foodborne pathogens, were analyzed. The results showed that there were no significant differences in Total Plate Counts, Total Coliform and Fecal coliform in the samples taken from the three supermarkets in Phnom Penh city, and they were found in unacceptable numbers in the raw beef products. However, the prevalence of foodborne pathogens including E. coli, S. aureus and B. cereus were found in acceptable numbers. Furthermore, the samples taken from the second supermarket had the highest level of microbial contamination among the three supermarkets, while the samples from the first supermarket had the lowest level of microbial contamination. This experimental finding demonstrated the need for sanitary improvement in the beef retails markets and strict sanitary guideline and implementation of these practices could guarantee consumers' health by consuming raw beefs with the lowest risk of foodborne pathogens.

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