Evaluation of the microbiological and nutritional quality of two types of fish flours from Ethmalosa fimbriata for their use as a dietary supplement

Abstract

Post-harvest fish conservation remains a recurring fishing industry problem in Benin. Etmalosa fimbriata is a non-oily fish commonly found on the Benin artisanal fisheries. Thus, this study aims to produce fish flour from Ethmalosa fimbriata and evaluate their physicochemical and microbiological characteristics and their potential nutritional qualities. The results indicated that fish flours produced are high in protein content (53.84 ± 0.09%) and minerals such as phosphorus (0.48 ± 0.03 to 1.83 ± 0.01%), calcium (0.26 ± 0.04 to 3.02 ± 0.08%), magnesium (0.09 ± 0.01 to 0.18 ± 0.05%) and iron (194.86 ± 0.06 to 246.82 ± 0.05 mg/kg). The results of the assessment of the sanitary quality of fish flour produced showed that the use of these fish whole alter the microbiological quality of flour produced and it would be better to use headless fish in feed formulation especially for children and immunodeficiency people