Biochemical and microbiological analysis of shea nut cake: A waste product from shea butter processing

In the quest for finding ways of utilizing shea nut cake (SNC), 24 samples of SNC were obtained from six industries to investigate the presence of microbes, minerals, proximate and phytochemical constituents. The samples were examined for total coliforms, total viable, faecal and Escherichia coli contamination. Other microbes were isolated and identified with the aid of the API kit. The SNC samples were also screened for bioactive (medicinal) potentials. The proximate and mineral constituents of the waste product were studied as well. The means in log cfu/g of total coliforms, total viable, faecal and Escherichia coliwere: 1.95 ± 0.74, 4.98 ± 1.17, 0.82 ± 0.49, and 0.48 ± 0.42, respectively. Other microbes identified were:Brevibacilllus agri, Bacillus mycoides, Bacillus cereus and Staphylococcus epidermidis. The phytochemical screenings of extracts of the cake samples revealed that SNC contains saponins, tannins, alkaloids, terpenoids and reducing sugar.  The proximate results indicated that the SNC has 13.03 ± 1.70% crude protein, 59.37 ± 8.66% carbohydrates, 23.38 ± 10.15% crude fat, 4.25 ± 0.79% ash content, 5.29 ± 0.98% moisture and 8.71 ± 0.85% fibre. The N, K, and Mg contents of the cake were respectively: 2.96 ± 0.39 mg/kg, 4.05 ± 0.62 mg/kg, and 1.43 ± 0.65 mg/kg. The rest of the minerals were: P (0.22 ± 0.04) mg/kg, Na (0.40 ± 0.05) mg/kg, Ca (0.51 ± 0.09) mg/kg, Cu (0.09 ± 0.05) mg/kg, Hg (0.10 ± 0.56) mg/kg and Pb (0.13 ± 0.07) mg/kg. This study highlights the potential applications of the SNC in the feed, animal, fertilizer and therapeutic industries.   Key words: Shea nut cake, microbiology, proximate-mineral composition, phytochemicals, Ghana.