B.M. TIIMUB, R.A. KUFFOUR, P. AKWEIBA, B.M. DZOMEKU AND K.S. OBIRI-DANSO
Abstract
A study was conducted to evaluate the shelf-life and microbial safety of three brands of bread under different package conditions available on the Ghanaian market. Bread samples were analyzed at the Crops research Institute laboratory in Kumasi. Shelf-life was determined by storing in refrigerator and room temperature. The treatment was a 3×3×2 factorial with three replicates. Factor A (bread types - wheat, sugar and butter); factor B (packaging material aluminum foil, polythene bag and news print) and factor C (storage condition- refrigeration and ambient). At different intervals in storage, the microscopic development of fungal organisms on the bread was determined based on the species level and the extent of growth and scored on a scale of 1-5. The results revealed that sugar bread packaged with aluminum foil and old news print and stored for 4 days under ambient conditions did not develop bread mould but, wheat and butter bread in polythene developed bread mould after 4 days. Wheat bread in aluminum foil under ambience in 7 days storage developed mould; whereas sugar and butter bread grew Penicilium sp and Rhizopus sp which covered 5% of the entire sample. Similarly, butter bread stored for 7 days developed complex fungi of (Aspergillus flavus, A. niger and Rhizopus sp) at level 3 growth on the scale and the mycelium was very grayish. Therefore, wrapping bread in old news print is not a bad practice on the Ghanaian market and bread should always be purchased fresh and consumed.