FERMENTATION AND PRODUCTION OF COCOYAM (Colocasia esculenta) FLOUR FORTIFIED WITH SOYBEAN POWDER

Cocoyam (Xanthomonas sagittifolium) is consumed by millions of people in the West African sub-region and in Nigeria in particular, regardless of ethnicity and socio-economic class. However, production and handling methods of cocoyam flour have not been standardised, resulting in a product with varying quality and safety indices and hence varying public health concerns. Fermentation and production of cocoyam flour fortified with soybean powder were carried out to determine its suitability or otherwise for consumption. Ten tubers of cocoyam were purchased from Eke-Awka market, Awka South Local Government Area, Anambra State. The microorganisms isolated are Aspergillus fumigatus, Aspergillus flavus, Rhizopus stolonifer, Penicillium sp., and Geotricium sp., which belong to the fungi family, while Bacillus sp. and Streptococcus sp. belong to the bacteria family. The result also revealed that the longer the storage time, the higher the pH and moisture content. Proper storage is recommended owing to the public health concerns due to endotoxins, food safety, shelf life, and biostability of this product.