COMPARATIVE MICROBIOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF PRE AND POST INDUSTRIAL PROCESSING PHASES OF COCOA BEANS

Abstract

Cocoa is a very ancient fruit that comes from the cocoa tree. Its seeds are rich in many properties such as lipids, proteins, starch and polyphenolic cells, making them important for consumption, as they have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant content, acting on different types of diseases such as cancer and cardiovascular diseases. This fruit is widely used for the production of various products such as chocolate, cocoa butter, cocoa liquor and others. Despite their benefits, when manufactured they can be subject to contamination that can lead to various losses, such as economic losses and the health of the population. Therefore, the objective of this work is to microbiologically analyze cocoa beans before and after processing in the industry, in order to determine whether their sterilization occurred correctly, and for these analyzes the results for aerobic psychotrophs and mold, mold and yeast will be compared. . Your results will be computed using the Standard Plate Count method (CFU/g) in accordance with ANVISA.