Biochemical Evaluation of Hot-Smoked African Catfish (Clarias gariepinus) Sampled from Sango and Ota Markets in Ogun State.

This study evaluated the biochemical stability of hot-smoked African catfish, Clarias gariepinus, retailed in Sango and Ota markets in Ogun State, Nigeria. Six smoked fish retailers were randomly selected from the markets and from which 36 fish samples were collected. The samples of smoked catfish were assessed weekly for a period of six weeks. Proximate composition was assessed using changes in moisture content and crude protein. Biochemical indexes evaluated were: Total volatile nitrogen (TVN), pH value and peroxide value (PV). In this study, the result of the proximate analysis showed there was a slight increase in the moisture content (21.47-26.05%) and decline in the protein content of the samples on weekly basis. Also, the biochemical parameters increased with storage time in the hot-smoked Clarias gariepinus samples, the ranges are TVN (13.65-31.52 mg/100g), pH (6.36-6.69), and PV (3.42-25.54Meq-kg). The hotsmoked Clarias gariepinus from the markets could not keep well till the 6th week, deterioration in fish post-harvest qualities were noticed from the 5th week of storage. Therefore, it can be inferred that smoked catfish with moisture content of about 10% or less have a shelf life of about 4-5 weeks under ambient storage conditions.