Quality Evaluation and Microbial Safety of Soybean Powder Sold in Umuahia, Abia State, Nigeria

The nutritional attributes of soybean has led to the availability of soy products particularly soybean powder of diverse qualities since its production technique is robust. This study is aimed at evaluating the quality of soybean powder displayed in major markets located in Umuahia, Abia state, Nigeria. The proximate composition, vitamin and mineral content and microbial safety were analysed. The protein content of all the samples were found to be low (2.4-4.5%), which could be attributed to the poor processing methods used wherein the protein inhibitors were not properly reduced to insignificant levels. Also the soybean powders were observed to have been adulterated with cassava flour. The carbohydrate content for all samples ranged between 30.52 to 63.14 % which validates its claim as a high energy source. The vitamin C content of the soybean samples was lower than the values for soybean in literature which is likely due to the soaking process which may have resulted in the leaching out of soluble vitamins. The mineral content was relatively low. The growth of Staphylococcus aureus in samples obtained from Cooperative and Ubani market was significantly high; (7.8x 105 cfu/g) and (8.1x 105 cfu/g) respectively which is attributed to poor handling and non-hygienic methods.

Keywords: Soybean powder, anti-nutritional factors, microbial analysis, nutrient composition