“Soumbara” is a fermented product sold in the markets of several West African countries. In the markets, it is sold in several formats (granulated, powder, and paste). The objective of this study was to evaluate the microbiological and physicochemical characteristics of these three types of “Soumbara” sold in the Korhogo markets. For this purpose, a preliminary survey followed by a sampling of 54 samples of “Soumbara” was carried out. The microorganism load count was carried out according to microbiological standards. The pH, titratable acidity, and moisture content were measured, respectively, with a pH meter, by dosing with sodium hydroxide solution and by differential weighing after passing the sample through the oven. The pH of the different samples is around 6. The moisture content is higher in “Soumbara” paste (20-24.7%) than in powdered (7.3-9.3%) and granulated (8.6-10.7%) “Soumbara.” The acidity rates are between 0.07 and 0.13%, 0.2 and 0.3%, and 0.08 and 0.1%, respectively, for the granulated, powder, and paste types. Mesophilic aerobic germ loads (6.17-8.38 log10 cfu/g) for all three types of “Soumbara” are above the standard. Total coliform (1.13-2.96 log10 cfu/g), mould (0.86-2.52 log10 cfu/g), and yeast (0.33-1.53 log10 cfu/g) loads are below standard. The microbiological quality of the three types of “Soumbara” is unsatisfactory. Overall, “Soumbara” powder is the most contaminated, followed by granulated and paste “Soumbara.” “Soumbara” must be added during culinary preparations in order to avoid possible public health problems.
Food is a fundamental need for life. Agriculture, animal husbandry, and fishing provide humans with a variety of products that must be preserved over a long period of time. However, there are great disparities in food availability, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa where food insecurity, galloping population growth, and unbridled urbanization make people fear the worst for the future [
Produced however in an artisanal method and sold in the different markets in unhygienic conditions, the “Soumbara” could harbour microorganisms that can be pathogenic for humans and degrade the nutritional quality of this product. The “Soumbara” provides a favourable environment for the development of microorganisms due to its high water and nutrient content. Soumbara can be eaten after cooking in sauces. It can also be used to season dishes without cooking (especially powdered Soumbara). This act could create a health problem for the consumer if this condiment contains pathogens.
In Côte d’Ivoire, the main centres of production of “Soumbara” are located in the far north of the country where the resources of
This study was undertaken in order to evaluate the physicochemical and microbiological characteristics of three types of “Soumbara” sold in different markets in the town of Korhogo.
A preliminary survey was carried out among the “Soumbara” sellers in the different markets (five markets). This survey was aimed to collect information on the different types of “Soumbara” sold in the markets, the most sold type, the place of supply, the method of conservation, and hygiene. This survey was conducted in Korhogo, a city in the north of Côte d’Ivoire.
The “Soumbara” production diagram contains several steps (Figure
Diagram of the different production steps of the three types of “Soumbara”.
Samples were collected in three markets in the city of Korhogo, namely, Haoussabougou market (MH), Petit Paris market (MPP), and Major market (MG) during the period from July to August 2020. The choice of these three markets is based on the effective presence of the different types of “Soumbara” (granulated, powder, paste). For the sampling, three (03) sellers were chosen at random in each market. Two samples of each type of “Soumbara” of approximately 100 g each were taken from each seller, making a total of 54 samples taken. All samples were taken in stomacher bags and transported to the laboratory in a cooler for analysis.
The pH was determined according to the method proposed by N’goran-aw et al. [
The titratable acidity was determined according to the method described by Amoa-awua et al. [
The moisture content was determined by differential weighing after oven drying according to the AOAC method [
Sample preparation: ten (10) grams of each sample of “Soumbara” was taken aseptically and homogenized in a borosilicate bottle containing 90 mL of buffered peptone solution. From the suspension obtained, decimal dilutions have been performed. Mesophilic aerobic germ count was performed on Plate Count Agar. The inoculated Petri dishes were incubated at 37°C/24 hours. The total coliforms count was carried out on the VRBL. Incubation of the Petri dishes was carried out at 35°C for 24 hours. Dichloran Rose Bengal Chloramphenicol agar was used for the enumeration of yeasts and moulds. The different microbial loads expressed in cfu/g have been calculated according to the formula ISO 7218 [
The analysis of variance (one-factor ANOVA) was performed with the Statistica software version 7.1 at the significance level (
In total, three types of “Soumbara” have been identified. These three types are sold simultaneously in three of the five markets surveyed. These are major market, Haoussabougou market and Petit paris market. Only two types are sold in the Soba and Sinistré markets. The type of “Soumbara” most requested by consumers is powdered “Soumbara” (62.4%) followed by granulated “Soumbara” (34.72%). Soumbara paste is the least requested (2.86%). All the saleswomen buy their products from the producers and take more than a day to sell their stock. At all the saleswomen, the unsold “Soumbara” is stored in the store. During marketing, the “Soumbara” is not protected by any of the saleswomen surveyed (Table
Survey results.
Parameters | Name of markets | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Soba market | Sinistré market | Major market | Haoussabougou market | Petit Paris market | Average | |
Soumbara type sold | ||||||
Granulated | 100% | 100% | 85.7% | 100% | 100% | 97.14% |
Powder | 80% | 100% | 71.4% | 60% | 100% | 82.28% |
Paste | 0% | 0% | 85.7% | 60% | 25% | 34.14% |
Type requested | ||||||
Granulated | 60% | 0% | 28.6% | 60% | 25% | 34.72% |
Powder | 40% | 100% | 57.1% | 40% | 75% | 62.42% |
Paste | 0% | 0% | 14.3% | 0% | 0% | 2.86% |
Supplying | ||||||
Producer | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Sale | ||||||
More than one day | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Storage unsold Soumbara | ||||||
Store | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Protection during the sale | ||||||
No protection | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
The averages obtained ranged from 6.05 to 6.8. The lowest averages were obtained in “Soumbara” powder, but compared to the averages of the other two types (paste, granulated), there is no significant difference (
pH of the different types of “Soumbara.”
Market | pH | ||
---|---|---|---|
Granulated | Powder | Paste | |
GM | |||
MH | |||
MPP |
In row and column, the averages affected by the same letter are not significantly different at the 5% threshold according to the Newmann-Keuls test. MH: Haoussabougou market; MPP: Petit Paris market; MG: Major market.
The average of titratable acidity of the samples of granulated “Soumbara” (0.07-0.13%) is close to that of “Soumbara” paste (0.08-0.1%). The highest percentages of titratable acidity were recorded in the samples of “Soumbara” powder (0.2-0.3%). However, apart from the acidity of the samples of “Soumbara” powder from the major market, which stands out significantly (
Titratable acidity of the different types of “Soumbara.”
Market | Titratable acidity (% acidity) | ||
---|---|---|---|
Granulated | Powder | Paste | |
MG | |||
MH | |||
MPP |
In row and column, the averages affected by the same letter are not significantly different at the 5% threshold according to the Newmann-Keuls test. MH: Haoussabougou market; MPP: Petit Paris market; MG: Major market.
The moisture content obtained was between 7.3 and 24.7%. The most important moisture contents (
Moisture content of the different types of “Soumbara.”
Market | Moisture content (%) | ||
---|---|---|---|
Granulated | Powder | Paste | |
MG | |||
MH | |||
MPP |
In row and column, the averages affected by the same letter are not significantly different at the 5% threshold according to the Newmann-Keuls test. MH: Haoussabougou market; MPP: Petit Paris market; MG: Major market.
Mesophilic aerobic germ loads in the different types of “Soumbara” range from 6.17 to 8.38 log10 cfu/g. They were between 6.41 and 8.38 log10 cfu/g for granulated “Soumbara,” 6.94 and 7.74 log10 cfu/g for powdered “Soumbara” and between 6.17 and 8.74 log10 cfu/g for paste “Soumbara.” The majority of the significant charges were recorded in the granulated type. The loads of the three “Soumbara” types obtained in the samples of the major market were higher (
Loads of mesophilic aerobic germ in the different types of “Soumbara.”
Market | Mesophilic aerobic germ loads (log10 cfu/g) | ||
---|---|---|---|
Granulated | Powder | Paste | |
MG | |||
MH | |||
MPP | |||
Limit ( |
In row and column, the averages affected by the same letter are not significantly different at the 5% threshold according to the Newmann-Keuls test. MH: Haoussabougou market; MPP: Petit Paris market; MG: Major market.
The loads were between 1.13 and 2.96 log10 cfu/g for all types. For each type of “Soumbara,” the loads were between 1.71 and 2.25, 1.86 and 2.96, and 1.13 and 1.64 log10 cfu/g for the granulated, powdered, and paste types, respectively. The most important loads were obtained in the powdered type; however, there is no significant difference between these loads and those of the other two “Soumbara” types. For all types of “Soumbara,” the loads are lower than the limit (
Loads of total coliforms in the different types of “Soumbara.”
Market | Total coliforms loads (log10 cfu/g) | ||
---|---|---|---|
Granulated | Powder | Paste | |
MG | |||
MH | |||
MPP | |||
Limit ( | 3 | 3 | 3 |
In row and column, the averages affected by the same letter are not significantly different at the 5% threshold according to the Newmann-Keuls test. MH: Haoussabougou market; MPP: Petit Paris market; MG: Major market.
The mould loads of the different types of “Soumbara” were between 0.86 and 2.52 log10 cfu/g. For each type, the loads were between 1.44 and 2.4, 1.76 and 2.25, and 0.86 and 1.56 log10 cfu/g for the granulated, powdered, and paste types, respectively. The powder type contains higher loads, but there were no significant differences (
Loads of mould in the different types of “Soumbara”.
Market | Mould loads (log10 cfu/g) | ||
---|---|---|---|
Granulated | Powder | Paste | |
MG | |||
MH | |||
MPP | |||
Limit ( | 4 | 4 | 4 |
In row and column, the averages affected by the same letter are not significantly different at the 5% threshold according to the Newmann-Keuls test. MH: Haoussabougou market; MPP: Petit Paris market; MG: Major market.
No yeast was counted in the three types of “Soumbara” of major market. For the other two markets, loads are between 0.33 and 1.53 log10 cfu/g. The samples of “Soumbara” powdered recorded the highest loads, but these were not significantly different from the other types. All yeast loads were below the value of the limit (
Loads of yeast in the different types of “Soumbara.”
Market | Yeast loads (log10 cfu/g) | ||
---|---|---|---|
Granulated | Powder | Paste | |
MG | <1 | <1 | <1 |
MH | <1 | ||
MPP | |||
Limit ( | 4 | 4 | 4 |
In row and column, the averages affected by the same letter are not significantly different at the 5% threshold according to the Newmann-Keuls test. MH: Haoussabougou market; MPP: Petit Paris market; MG: Major market.
The range of pH obtained for the three types of “Soumbara” is between 6.05 and 6.8, and there is no significant difference from one type to another. These values are within the pH range obtained by Kambire et al. [
The moisture content obtained in the samples of “Soumbara” in paste form are significantly higher than those of the other two types (granulated and powdered). This important difference in moisture content is linked to the production process of “Soumbara.” Indeed, a drying stage is necessary during production to obtain granulated and powdered “Soumbara” unlike paste “Soumbara.” The moisture content of the “Soumbara” paste is within the range of the moisture content values reported (15-27%) by Camara et al. [
In the different markets, the “Soumbara” is sold without any protection. This condiment is sold unpackaged; moreover, the conservation of the unsold “Soumbara” is done in the stores where the temperature of conservation is not respected. All these bad practices could influence the microbiological contamination level of this condiment in the markets.
All mesophilic aerobic germ loads for the three types of “Soumbara” in this study are higher than the guide value of 6 log10 cfu/g, indicating an unsatisfactory microbiological quality of the different samples. Lack of personnel hygiene, storage in improper conditions, and prolongation of the storage period due to delay in its sale could be at the origin of these high loads. This result corroborates that of Kambire et al. [
The presence of total coliforms in the different types of “Soumbara” would be due to a lack of hygiene during production and marketing, but also to the conditions of conservation. Total coliform loads are almost identical to those reported by Somda et al. [
Mould loads are higher than yeast loads but lower than the guide value (4 log10 cfu/g). This result differs from that of Degnon et al. [
Overall, the microorganism loads of powdered “Soumbara” form are the highest, followed by the loads of granulated “Soumbara” form and finally paste “Soumbara” form despite its higher moisture content than the other two. The level of contamination would be more related to daily contamination and to the format of the “Soumbara.” Indeed, the “Soumbara” powder has a large contact surface for contamination and is easily mixed compared to the other two.
The objective of this study was to carry out a microbiological and physicochemical characterisation of three formats of “Soumbara” sold in the markets of Korhogo. The results of this study show that the microbiological quality of the three formats of “Soumbara” sold in Korhogo is unsatisfactory. Mesophilic aerobic germs are responsible for this unsatisfactory result. These microorganisms could degrade this condiment by altering the taste, the smell, and the aspect, in sum the merchantability of the “Soumbara.” Overall, the level of contamination is higher in “Soumbara” powder. This format is most often used in food without any cooking. The consumer must add the “Soumbara” during the cooking of the meals. Producers and sellers should adopt adequate hygienic conditions to preserve the safety of this condiment.
Data used to support the findings of this study are included within the article.
The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this paper.
The authors would like to thank the “Soumbara” sellers and Mr. Coulibaly, laboratory technician, for his help during the laboratory work.