Ochratoxin A-producing fungi in commercial granola

Abstract

The present study aimed at identifying the fungal species occurring in granola, and to verify the ability of the strains in producing ochratoxin A. Sixty granola samples of four different brands were purchased in commercial establishments located in the city of Teresina – Piauí state. The fungi were counted, isolated and the species were identified, and the section Nigri strains were tested for detecting their ability in producing ochratoxin A. No fungal growth was found in 11 of the analyzed samples. In samples showing fungal growth, it was as high as 5.17 log10 CFU/g. A significant difference (p<0.05) among the analyzed granola brands was found. The most frequently isolated fungus genus was Cladosporium (46.9 %), followed by Aspergillus spp and its teleomorphs (37.4 %), and Penicillium spp. (5.4 %). The granola brand A showed the highest counting among the analyzed brands, which demonstrated that a possible failure at some stages of the industrialization process might be occurred. None of the isolated Aspergillus section Nigri strains showed the ability in producing ochratoxin A.