Influence of Back Slopping on the Safety and Nutrition of African Almond Seeds Condiment (Ogiri)

Abstract

Fermented condiments play a vital role in human diets and contribute significantly to nutritional intake. However, traditional fermentation methods often lack standardized safety controls. This study developed a novel condiment from African almond seeds (ASC) and evaluated its safety and nutritional quality using a back-slopping fermentation approach. The condiment was produced through spontaneous fermentation, while aflatoxins, fumonisins, and biogenic amines were analyzed using Gas Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS). Repeated back-slopping was employed to obtain 10th and 20th-generation cultures. Metabolites from the 10th culture were assessed, and bacterial isolates from the 20th culture were screened for safety before use. Results showed that back-slopping significantly enhanced product safety and quality through significant reduction of the initial high levels of mycotoxins-AFB1 (9.98 mg/kg), AFB2 (29.46 mg/kg), FB1 (24.46 mg/kg), and FB2 (37.42 mg/kg) to 0.34 µg/kg, 0.73 µg/kg, 0.51 µg/kg, and 0.07 µg/kg, respectively (ANOVA; P<0.05), while AFG1, AFG2, and FB3 became undetectable, biogenic amines, including cadaverine, tyramine, and spermidine, were reduced to negligible levels. Five bacteria were isolated from the 10th mother culture, two of which were Bacillus subtilis of different strains, while the remaining were Lysinibacillus capsici, L. macroides and Enterococcus faecium. Selected non-pathogenic strains used as starters (Bacillus subtilis and Lysinibacillus capsici) enhanced protein (31.67-33.47%) and carbohydrate (24.05–29.86%) contents compared to spontaneous fermentation (25.73% and 19.76%). These findings demonstrate that controlled fermentation improves safety and nutritional quality, supporting almond seeds as a viable substrate for condiment production.