Fungal colonization and biochemical changes in coffee beans undergoing monsooning

• Published in: Food chemistry Vol. 94; no. 2; pp. 247 - 252
• Main Authors: Tharappan, Babitha, Ahmad, Rasheed
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Elsevier Ltd 2006; Elsevier
• Subjects: Absidia; Aspergillus candidus; Aspergillus niger; Aspergillus tamarii; Biological and medical sciences; Coffea arabica; Coffee; Coffee, tea and other stimulative beverage industries; Food industries; Fruit and vegetable industries; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Monsooning; Mycoflora; Penicillium; Phenolics; Protein; Reducing sugars; Tannin; Monsooning; Tannin; Reducing sugars; Mycoflora; Coffee; Phenolics; Protein; Vegetables; Flavonoid; Bean; Fungi; Reducing sugar; Polyphenol; Phenols; Thallophyta; Coffee: Monsooning
• ISSN: 0308-8146; 1873-7072
• DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2004.11.016

Changes in the mycofloral composition and concentrations of proteins, reducing sugars, phenols and tannins in coffee beans were analysed during different weeks of monsooning in Coffea arabica L. (Arabica) and C. canephora Pierre ex Froehner (Robusta). The highest fungal populations occurred during the fourth to seventh week of the monsooning process and the dominant fungal species were Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus tamarii, Aspergillus candidus, Penicillium spp. and Absidia heterospora. The protein and reducing sugar content increased steadily while the tannin content decreased beyond the detectable limit during monsooning. The phenolic content, however, was found to decline in the case of Robusta and increase slightly in Arabica. Throughout the study the monsooned coffee beans had different mycoflora and varied biochemical composition compared to non-monsooned coffee beans.