Microbial Effects on Selected Stored Fruits and Vegetables under Ambient Conditions in Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria

Information on the level of contamination due to bacterial and fungal infestations on some of the freshly supplied fruits and vegetables in Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria is lacking. This study investigated the microbial load of some freshly supplied fruits and vegetables in Makurdi which included Apples, Banana, Carrots and Oranges. As part of food quality surveillance study, this work looked at the incidence of pathogen associated with fruits and vegetables from three locations in Makurdi. The samples were evaluated for bacterial (coliforms and mesophiles) and fungal (mold and yeast) loads. Results of the microbial test showed that Apple had the average absolute highest microbial load with mesophilic aerobic plate count of 127 log10CFU/in2, coliform, 71 log10CFU/in2, yeast, 30 log10CFU/in2 and mold, 22.3 log10CFU/in2. Carrot and Banana followed with average absolute mesophilic aerobic plate count of 122.3 log10CFU/in2 and 113 log10CFU/in2, coliform of 97.7 and 42.7 log10CFU/in2, yeast, 23.7 and 23.7 log10CFU/in2 and mold, 20.7 and 28 log10CFU/in2, respectively. Orange had the least microbial load with an average absolute mesophilic aerobic plate count of 27.3 log10CFU/in2, coliform - 30.3 log10CFU/in2, yeast - 21 log10CFU/in2 and a mold count of 29.3 log10CFU/in2. The ANOVA results showed highly significant effects (p<0.01) of bacteria, fungi and the fruit/vegetable types in the three locations. The interaction effects between the microbes and the fruit/vegetables were significant and increased with length of storage.