Determination of Geotrichum mold in comminuted fruits and vegetables: collaborative study

The official AOAC method for determination of Geotrichum mold in canned fruits and vegetables (44.079) requires a series of 3 sieves, Nos. 8, 16, and 230, to separate the packing liquid from the product and the mold from the packing liquid. Although this method has been successful for whole or coarsely chopped products (e.g., green beans, potatoes, carrots, and beets), finely divided products such as fruit purees and tomato products tend to clog the sieves. A method was developed in which the product is centrifuged, diluted by volume, stained with crystal violet, and counted with the sieving steps eliminated. The proposed method was adopted official first action.