Microorganisms associated with the preparation of plantain pudding in Western Nigeria

Abstract

The microbiological and physico-chemical quality of plantain pudding was evaluated during processing and storage under ambient temperature (30.5°C) for 120 h duration. Results indicates that the total viable bacteria count decreased from 1.36 x 105 cfu/g (raw sample) to 0.3 x 101 cfu/g after cooking and thereafter increase steadily to 1.05 x 108 cfu/g while the total fungi count decreased from 2.70 x 104 cfu/g to non detectable count after boiling but increase to 6.40 x 106 cfu/g at the end of the storage period. Seven bacteria genera; Bacillus, Staphylococcus, Streptococcus, Pseudomonas, Klebsiella, Lactobacillus and Escherichia coli and six fungi genera; Fusarium spp., Aspergillus spp., Penicillium spp., Alternia spp., Geotrichium spp. and Cladosporium spp. were detected and isolated. The pH decreased from 5.7 (raw sample) to 4.7 after boiling and thereafter decreased gradually till the end of the storage period while the titratable acidity increased slightly. Furthermore, the moisture content
decreased steadily all through the storage period.