In this study, 50 randomly selected samples of Carra cheese, raw milk cheese, were purchased from different retail markets in the Antakya (Antioch) region and were investigated for microbiological quality and some chemical analyses. In these samples, the numbers of microorganisms were found as follows: total mesophilic bacteria, 1.87 x 10(8) cfu/g; Staphylococcus aureus, 2.51 x 10(3) cfu/g; enterococci, 4.40 x 10(5) cfu/g; Enterobacteriaceae, 5.60 x 10(5) cfu/g; yeast and mould, 4.80 x 10(7) cfu/g; coliform, 1.02 x 10(4) cfu/g; Escherichia coli, 4.27 x 10(3) efu/g. Salmonella were not detected in any of the samples. Mean moisture, salt and fat contents of Carra cheese were found as 41.26%, 7.82% and 26.77%, respectively. The pH value of the samples varied between 4.53 and 6.32 with a mean of 5.24. The microbiological findings showed the presence of high counts of microorganisms investigated and the poor hygienic quality of Carra cheese. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.