EFFECT OF STORAGE ON THE NUTRIENT COMPOSITION AND THE MYCOBIOTA OF SUNDRIED WATER MELON SEEDS (Citrullus lanatus)

The nutrient composition and the mycobiota of Citrullus lanatus (water melon) seeds were investigated during twenty weeks storage. Six fungi were isolated namely Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus flavus, Fusarium sp., Mucor sp., Neurospora sp. and Penicillium sp. The fungal count was found to increase as the storage time increased. The proximate (in %) analysis were found to decrease as the storage time increased. The fat content was found to decrease from 38.98 in the freshly shelled water melon seeds to 35.44 in the stored seeds. The ash content decreased from 3.23 to 2.92 in the stored water melon seeds while the fibre content decreased from 9.60 to 5.44 in the stored seeds. The mineral composition (in mg.100g-1) also decreased during the storage. The sodium content decreased from 1.78 to 1.66, calcium from 0.80 to 0.34, magnesium from 6.75 to 6.30, zinc from 0.49 to 0.34, iron from 1.32 to 1.00, copper from 0.06 to 0.02 and manganese was not detected.