Background: Cow's milk is the most consumed product worldwide. However, due to bacterial contamination, milk can be risky for consumer's health. Despite pasteurization and techniques applied to date, they have not demonstrated efficacy in eliminating contaminants. It is important to know the content of bacteria in raw and packaged cow milk to avoid food-borne diseases. Objective: The study was designed to assess the bacterial prevalence of raw cow's milk in Saladin Governorate, Iraq, and to compare it with the bacterial prevalence of imported packaged cow milk. Method: The study involved ninety milk samples, thirty samples of each pasteurized raw domestic milk, imported cow milk, and domestic cow milk, and analyzed the morphological properties of the colony, gram stain, and biochemical tests. Results: The study findings indicated that raw milk was contaminated with Staph. aureus, Staph. epidermidis, Staph. saprophyticus, E. coli, P. aeruginosa, E. aerogenes, and P. mirabilis. The prevalence percentages of bacterial species in raw milk samples were 21%, 12%, 6%, 9%, 3%, 6%, and 6%, respectively. In comparison, imported packaging milk had a lower percentage of bacteria than raw milk.
Conclusion: Our study reveals that raw home milk in Saladin Governorate is contaminated with various bacteria. The contamination arises from inadequate hygiene practices during milk handling. While imported milk is less contaminated, it still contains bacteria. This can be attributed to contamination that occurs after the production process. Should subject raw domestic and imported milk to pasteurization before consumption to decrease the risk of foodborne illness.