Assessment of the mycoflora of commercial poultry feeds sold in the humid tropical environment of Imo State, Nigeria

Abstract

This study was carried out to identify the common moulds growing in selected commercial poultry feed sold in Owerri, Imo State, Nigeria. Forty-eight bulk samples derived from192 bags of feeds were collected from broiler starter (BS), broiler finishers (BF), grower mash (GM) and layer mash (LM) across 4 different brands of commercial poultry feeds, which included Livestock (LF), Top (TF) Guinea (GF) and Vital (VF) feeds. The feed samples were collected during the rainy season months of June, July and August. The common moulds isolated from these feeds were Aspergillus sp., Penicillium sp., Mucor sp., Yeast sp., Rhizopus sp., Epicoecum sp., Gymnoaseus sp., Cladosporium sp., Mortierella sp. as well as Bacteria. Generally, more organisms were isolated in June than the other months with Mortierella sp. being the only one not isolated in that month. Vital feed with 8 different isolates had the highest diversity of fungal species while the others had between 4 and 5 species. Prevalence rates across the feed types, generally ranged from 18.76% in layer mash to 30.03% in broiler finisher. The four Aspergillus sp. isolated came from GM and BF. This study highlights the need for constant monitoring of moulds in commercial feedstuff produced in the humid tropical environments such as Imo state, Nigeria. There is also the need to routinely include fungal growth inhibitors in commercial feeds since moulds are capable of reducing the nutritional values of feedstuff as well as elaborating pathogenic toxins.

Authors and Affiliations

I. C. Okoli, C. U. Nweke, C. G. Okoli , M. N. Opara

Keywords

Related Articles

Carbon monoxide levels along roadway

This paper predicts and compares the carbon monoxide (CO) concentration levels along Sembulan Road for years 2004 and 2014 using CAL3QHC air dispersion model at two major locations, i.e., at Sembulan Roundabout and Suter...

The providence of nature: Valuing ecosystem services

Natural ecosystems provide an array of critical but largely undervalued goods and services. Because these are seldom included in benefit-cost calculations of land use change, the value of wild land development nearly alw...

Utilization and flow of energy in tropical ecosystem: A test case for two Ox-bow lakes

To estimate the rate of organic production, two solar powered tropical natural aquatic systems (Ox-bow lakes) have been studied for 24 months. The study of utilization of energy in those two tropical lakes has revealed t...

Effect of aluminum and chromium on the growth and germination of mesquite (Prosopis juliflora swartz.) DC.<br />

Prosopis seeds were grown under controlled environment in solution of aluminum and chromium at different concentration alone as well as combined together. The effect of these metals was studied on seed germination, roo...

Environmental management of coastal regions in the Caspian Sea<br />

Considering rapid population growth and migration, higher accumulation of communities is noticed in coastal areas. This is especially true with the coastal areas of the Caspian Sea. In the present investigation coastal a...

Download PDF file
  • EP ID EP91294
  • DOI -
  • Views 109
  • Downloads 0

How To Cite

I. C. Okoli, C. U. Nweke, C. G. Okoli, M. N. Opara (2006). Assessment of the mycoflora of commercial poultry feeds sold in the humid tropical environment of Imo State, Nigeria. International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology, 3(1), 9-14. https://europub.co.uk/articles/-A-91294