Hi 3F,
Thks yr quotes. The most practical OP-useful bit in yr quote is probably -
Procedures for obtaining samples and for the laboratory examination of these products are contained in the latest edition of SMEDP and shall be in substantial compliance with these methods.
Unfortunately the manual SMEDP requires money or a good Technical Library. (Or micro. books for routine methods).
JFI, this is a fairly straightforward "rinse" method from a (much) older edition of SMEDP to that currently in use -
Milk Can
1. Carefully introduce directly from a bottle 100ml of sterile water into the can to be tested.
2. Replace the can cover and shake vigorously 25 times, making sure to wet the entire inner surface of the can and cover. remove the cover and pour the rinse water bck into a sterile container avoiding as far as practicable contamination from the lip of the can.
3. By means of a sterile pipette, transfer 1ml ofthe rise water to a culture dish and pour agar plates in the usual manner. If high counts are expected, it may be necessary to dilute this rinse water before plating.
4. After 48 hrs incubation, all recognisable colonies on the plate should be counted with the aid of an approved colony counter.
Calculation
Assuming that 1ml of the 100ml of rinse water was plated, the number of colonies on the plate multiplied by 100 is considered as the plate count per can and cover.