Suitability of the Charm HVS and a microbiological multiplate system for detection of residues in raw milk at EU maximum residue levels

In this paper we assessed the suitability of the Charm HVS and a newly developed microbiological multiplate system as post-screening tests to confirm the presence of residues in raw milk at or near the maximum permissible residue level (MRL). The multiplate system is composed of Bacillus stearothermophilus var. calidolactis plate at pH 8.0 for detection of beta-lactam antibiotics and tylosin, Bacillus cel ens plate at pH 6.0 for detection of tetracyclines, Micrococcus lutens plate at pH 8.0 for detection of macrolides, Bacillus subtilis EGA plate at pH 8.0 for detection of aminoglycosides, trimethoprim-containing plate seeded with B. subtilis EGA at pH 7.0 for detection of sulphonamides, Escherichia coli plate at pH 6.0 for detection of quinolone and polymyxin, and Staphylococcus epidermis plate at pH 6.0 for detection of novobiocin, For each test plate an action level is proposed in such a way that residues can be detected in raw bulk tank milk at levels near or below the established EU MRLs of beta-lactam antibiotics, tetracyclines, aminoglycosides, macrolides, sulphonamides, colistin, and quinolones. The Charm HVS test used to confirm the presence of tetracycline and macrolide residues gave false-positive results near the EU MRLs, The multiplate system gave valid results. Based on data for raw bulk tank milk samples and the proposed action level for each test plate for suspected samples, we demonstrated that the multiplate system is a reliable postscreening method that can be performed easily and cheaply in microbiological laboratories.