Microbial Contamination and Occurrence of Aflatoxins in Processed Baobab Products in Kenya.

Margaret James,Samuel Imathiu,Willis Owino,Alejandro Castillo

doi:10.1155/2022/2577222

Margaret James, Samuel Imathiu + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1155/2022/2577222

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Abstract

Baobab fruit demand has been on the rise in the recent past, and in an attempt to match the demand, farmers and middlemen are forced to harvest immature fruits which are not fully dried. To ensure an acceptable moisture content, baobab fruits are subjected to solar drying, which is a slow process and often carried out in open and unhygienic conditions raising safety concerns. This study was conducted to investigate the microbial and aflatoxin contamination levels in ready-to-eat baobab products from selected formal and informal processors in specific counties of Kenya. Selected processed baobab products were sampled randomly from formal and informal processors and analyzed for the total aerobic count, Enterobacteriaceae, yeast and molds, ergosterol, aflatoxins, moisture, and water activity. The moisture and water activity of baobab pulp and candies from formal processors ranged between 7.73% and 15.06% and 0.532 and 0.740 compared to those from informal processors which ranged from 10.50% to 23.47% and 0.532 to 0.751, respectively. In this study, baobab pulp from formal processors had significantly (p = 0.0008, 0.0006) lower Enterobacteriaceae and yeast and molds loads (0.7 ± 0.29 and 3.1 ± 0.38 log 10 CFU/g, respectively) than pulp from informal processors (3.1 ± 0.70 and 5.3 ± 0.11 log 10 CFU/g, respectively). Similarly, the Enterobacteriaceae counts of candies from formal processors (nondetectable) were considerably lower (p = 0.015) than those from informal processors (1.8 ± 0.56 log 10 CFU/g). The ergosterol content in these baobab product samples ranged between 0.46 and 1.92 mg/100 g while the aflatoxin content ranged between 3.93 and 11.09 × 103 μg/kg, respectively. Fungal and aflatoxin contamination was detected in 25% and 5% of pulp from formal and informal processors, respectively, and in 5% of candies from informal processors. Microbial contamination in processed baobab products shows an unhygienic processing environment while the fungal and aflatoxin contamination may indicate poor postharvest handling, transport, and storage conditions of baobab fruits along the baobab value chain.

Highlights

Baobab (Adansonia digitata) candies and pulp are ready-toeat snacks processed from baobab fruit mostly consumed in a number of sub-Saharan Africa countries
The presence of baobab fruit pulp increased bioaccessibility of iron from cereals as shown in vitro studies, which may be attributed to high contents of vitamin C and other organic acids [2]
The term formal was used in this study to indicate processors registered with the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS), whereas informal represents processors not registered with KEBS

Summary

Introduction

Baobab (Adansonia digitata) candies and pulp are ready-toeat snacks processed from baobab fruit mostly consumed in a number of sub-Saharan Africa countries. The baobab fruit pulp is naturally dried and is rich in vitamin C, calcium, and antioxidants [1]. The presence of baobab fruit pulp increased bioaccessibility of iron from cereals as shown in vitro studies, which may be attributed to high contents of vitamin C and other organic acids [2]. Intake of baobab pulp can has been demonstrated to improve nonheme iron absorption in the populations most vulnerable to iron deficiency [2]. The rise in baobabs imports led to an increase in demand from African countries with high baobab tree populations, including Kenya, Sudan, Malawi, and Ghana [4, 5]

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