An Investigation of Microbiological Contaminations during Manufacturing Process of Desiccated Coconut: A Case Study at St. Josep DC Mills, Katana.

Abstract

The Desiccated Coconut (DC) industry is one of the major export oriented food processing industries in Sri Lanka, which has become a key foreign exchange earner. Market value of DC is greatly dependent on its quality. The maximum Aerobic Plate Count (APC), as recommended by Coconut Development Authority 10,000 cfu/g which is the only criteria that should be guaranteed by the manufacturers at present However, there is a growing demand for DC with APC less than 5,000 cfu/g. This indicates that the DC market can be expanded by fulfilling above requirement by further reducing the APC through eliminating possibilities of contaminations. Therefore, this study was carried out to investigate possible ways of microbiological contaminations and to find out the means of reducing the contaminations. Samples of DC and coconut meat were collected from 12 points of DC manufacturing process. All samples were tested for microbiological tests namely Aerobic Plate Count (APC), Yeast and Mold Count (YMC). Data were analyzed by ANOVA General Linear Model using SAS statistical package. According to the results, wet section and addition of Chiplet fine (CF) to the cooling table had considerable contamination potentials. Addition of CF had a significant effect on YMC of the final product To avoid contaminations, it was proposed to change the water regularly in washing baths, to follow sterilization methods for CF product before adding directly in to the cooling table, and to inspect the wet section more regularly.