A Compilation of Histamine-Forming Bacteria Associated with Foods

The objective of this article is to document the names of histamine-forming bacteria (HFB) found in foods and available from the scientific literature. This extensive compilation found 148 unique species of HFB identified, representing 57 genera, 25 families, 13 orders, 6 classes, and 3 phyla. A synonymous species name was recorded in many cases, so both species names have been recorded in this article. Based on the findings, there were 78 species of Gram-negative and 70 species of Gram-positive HFB, with 18 spore-forming species. The food matrix, or type of food from which the bacteria were identified, also is provided, and the most common food matrix identified in this listing was fish based. The genera with the most HFB species were Bacillus (14), Lactobacillus (11), and Staphylococcus (8). The families with the most genera were Lactobacillaceae (31), Enterobacteriaceae (29), and Vibrionaceae (17). A list of published HFB, publication authors, and corresponding document DOI numbers is included. This compilation with DOI numbers should be useful to other researchers searching for HFB with certain characteristics.