Aflatoxins and Microbiological Characteristics of Stored Bread fruit (Artocarpus Communis) Chips Treated with Aframomum Danielli and Sodium Metabisulphite

Breadfruit is a valuable food resource with significant amounts of certainminerals, vitamins and other essential amino acids. Wholesome fresh breadfruit was processed into dried chips and treated with ground Aframomum danielli and sodium metabisulphite salt in the same proportions. The treated breadfruit chips were packaged in polyethylene bags and transparent buckets at different storage conditions. The total aflatoxins of the chips using high performance liquid chromatography were found to be 0.0 – 2.43ug / kg and microbial loads ranged between 0.2to 2.9x 102 cfu/g and 0.0 to 1.0 x104 cfu/g. The study showed that properly dried and stored breadfruit chipscan be free from or have minimal aflatoxins and microbial loads with or without pre-treatment.

Keywords: Breadfruit chips, Aflatoxins,Aframomum danielli, Microbial loads, Sodium metabisulphite.