Investigating the fungal pathogens of leafy vegetables

SUMMARY

Our dependence on healthy vegetable crops as reliable source of food traced all barriers of nation and culture. Consumers in Nigeria now demand excellent quality vegetable from the farmers and vendors that produce or sale large volumes of high quality vegetables (Shehu et al., 2014). Despite the health benefits derived from consuming fresh vegetables, the risk of microbiological contaminations in vegetables is of public concern due to the possibility of vegetable contaminations along the food chain, beginning from the vegetable farm to the dinner table (Kuan et al., 2017); this concern is compounded by the fact that these vegetables are mostly eaten fresh. Microbiological contamination of vegetables can occur directly or indirectly through (i) contact with soil, dust, water, and (ii) punctures and open cuts of tissues of vegetables; thus, contaminations of vegetables may occur internally or externally during cultivation, harvest, packaging, storage, transporting and marketing (Solomon et al., 2002; Bernstein, 2007; Eni et al., 2010; de Giusti et al., 2010). Contaminated vegetables rot more quickly and become unwholesome due to microbiological activities of resident microorganisms.