HEALTH RISK EVALUATION OF MICROBIAL CONTAMINANTS IN TRADITIONALLY PROCESSED CASSAVA FLOUR

Abstract

This work focused on the isolation and evaluation of micro-organisms that ferment peeled  raw cassava for the purpose of determining their health effects on p eople that feed on it commonly known as (Alebo) in Hausa Language. Three (3) samples were randomly collected from traditionally processing sites of cassava flour in Wamba, Lafia Local Government and  Shabu Development Area of Nasarawa State to identify certain micro-organisms that may be presence during processing and their health effect on humans. The result obtained  from Shabu   recorded the highest number of microbial counts  population, followed by Lafia while Wamba recorded the least microbial counts.The results of the analysis reveals the presence of microorganinsms; staphylocooccus aureus, e.coli, proteus spp and saccharomyces cerevisiae. P eople who consume much of the flour in the area of this study may suffer from gastrointestinal, hematologic, gastroenteritis, urinary tract infections and neonatal meningitis diseases. The finding also shows that the flour can cause diarrhea and staph infections in humans.  Modern methods of processing of the flour should be used than the traditional way in order to reduce the effects of the micro organisms on human health