Occurrence of Fungi in Frozen Shawa Fish (Clupea harangus) sold in some areas in Ilorin Metropolis

Abstract

A total number of 100 frozen fishes (Clupea harangua) were purechased from three different locations in Ilorin metropolis (Osere, Agbabiaka nod Sango). The plastic bags used in packing the frozen fishes were sterilized using 70% ethanol The frozen fish samples were transported in a sterile ice-parked cooler.Samples from the cutting slabs at each location were also collected using cotton swabs and they were soaked in a conical flask containing sterile distilled water. An Aluminium foil was used to cover the conical flask. The frozen fish and samples from the cutting slabs a each locution were transported to the Microbiology Laboratory,University of Ilorin for fungj analysis. Results revealed high contamination of yeast and mould in the cutting slabs and the gills of thie sumpled frozen Shnwn fishes. The isolated fungi were Alternaria tenuis,Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus fumnigatus,Aspergillus niger, Neurospora crazea, Rhizopus stolonifer Penicillium citrinum and Saccharomyces cerevisie with Aspergilius spp having the highest number.It was concluded that large occurrence of Aspergiflus spp in the sampled frozen fish is risk to human health. The study therefore commended proper processing ad storage of frozen fish