COMPARISM OF THE PRESERVATIVE ACTIVITY OF ALLIGATOR PEPPER AND GINGER EXTRACTS ON ZOBO LIQUOR DURING STORAGE AT AMBIENT TEMPERATURE

The preservative effect of the ethanol extracts alligator pepper and ginger on the shelf life duration of H. sabdariffa calyx liquor commonly known as ‘zobo’ was compared by introducing different concentrations of extracts into laboratory prepared zobo in order to arrest deterioration in physico-chemical and organoleptic quality due to microbial proliferation. The physicochemical and microbial parameters were monitored during storage at ambient temperatures (27±3oC) for four weeks. End-of-storage results showed that pH values ranged from 2.3 to 3.46. %TTA ranged from 0.0616 to 0.506%. Vitamin C values ranged from 2.93mg/100g to 19.36mg/100g. TVC (bacterial) values ranged from 2.59±0.19 log10cfu/ml to 6.3±0.19 log10cfu/ml. TVC (fungal values) ranged from 2.8log10cfu/ml to 4.51log10cfu/ml. The results also indicated the preservative activity of the incorporated extracts when compared to the control sample. There was, with respect to concentration of extract added, little significant difference in preservative effect between samples preserved with ginger and alligator pepper extracts.