Legumes and oil bean seeds used for the production of condiments in Africa are inedible in their natural state; they contain some anti-nutritional factors especially undigestible oligosaccharides and phytate. Fermentation impact desirable changes by reducing anti-nutritional factors and increasing digestibility. Ugba is an alkaline fermented African oil bean cotyledon (Pentaclethra macrophylla) produced by the Ibos and other ethnic groups in southern Nigeria. Seen as a family business in many homes, its preparation is in accordance with handed-down tradition from previous generations and serves as a cheap source of plant protein. Its consumption as a native salad is made possible by fermentation of the cotyledon for 2–5 days, but could also serve as a soup flavoring agent when fermentation last for 6–10 days. The fermentation process involved is usually natural with an attendant issue of product safety, quality and inconsistency. The production of this condiment is on a small scale and the equipment used are very rudimentary, devoid of good manufacturing procedures that call to question the issue of microbial safety. This paper therefore reviews the production process and the spectrum of microbial composition involved during fermentation. In addition, potential spoilage agents, nutritional and biochemical changes during production are examined. Furthermore, information that can support development of starter cultures for controlled fermentation process in order to guarantee microbiological safety, quality and improved shelf life are also discussed.

Studies were carried out to screen various microbial isolates of UGBA obtained from both traditionally fermented and laboratory samples for some technical properties required for the fermentation of the product. The technical properties screened for were; ability to produce enzymes (amylase, protease and lipase) and bacteriocin production. Possible starter cultures were selected from the screened isolates for controlled fermentation of the product. Preservation of the product by dehydration method was also investigated. Various dehydrating temperatures were studied and the most appropriate temperature regime was adopted. The shelf- life of the dehydrated product was also determined. Proximate composition and the amino acid profile of both fresh samples and the dehydrated ones were also carried out so as to ensure that there is no significant nutrient lost during the process of dehydration. Rehydration of the preserved product was also examined. The following groups of organisms were isolated; Bacillus species, Proteus species, Staphylococcus species, Micrococcus species and Pseudomonas species. Bacillus species exhibited the highest potential for the fermentation of the product based on the result of the technical properties screened for. Two isolates identified as Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus lichenformis were particularly outstanding and were therefore selected as possible starter cultures. Controlled fermentation of UGBA using the selected organisms singly and as mixed culture produced samples that were similar to the ones produced by the traditional method. However, fermentation period was reduced from 72 hr to 48 hr using the two isolates as mixed culture for the fermentation process. The most appropriate temperature regime for dehydrating the product was found to be 50°C. Proximate analysis and amino acid profile assay of the products show that there is no significant difference between the preserved product and fresh sample. Shelf- life studies of the samples showed that there is a significant difference between the preserved sample and the fresh one in terms of their keeping quality (6 months and 3 days respectively). The fresh sample lost its integrity (colour, taste, texture and aroma) after 72 hours while the preserved sample maintained its integrity even after six months of storage under room temperature.