Changes in the mycoflora of UK wheat shipped to tropical regions

✍ Scribed by P.W. Wareing; R.A. Boxall; M.C. Gough; S.I. Phillips

• Book ID: 103984768
• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 1993
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 588 KB
• Volume: 32
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0964-8305
• DOI: 10.1016/0964-8305(93)90049-8

✦ Synopsis

ME4 4TB

A BS TRA C T Food-aid is a major component of food security for many countries. The integration of food-aid grain into national stocks and the maintenance of quality has been a neglected area of research. Losses frequently occur when food grain is shipped from temperate to tropical regions. The water content of grain at export is often at the limit for short-term storage in temperate climates. When such grain is exposed to the higher temperatures prevailing in tropical regions its water activity (aw) may increase sufficiently to allow moulds to grow. Two consignments of wheat, exported from the UK to Asia and Africa, were monitored in shipboard and warehouse trials as part of a long-term investigation of the problem of mould spoilage during shipment and storage. In both trials, mycological analysis proved to be a very sensitive tool for detecting micro-environmental changes in the grain bulk. New specifications, imposing stricter limits on grain water content, are suggested for food-aid wheat e.,cported from the UK.