Post-harvest conservation of orange (Citrus sinensis L.) using bacterial biocontrol agents isolated from the rhizosphere of the cashew tree (Anacardium occidentale L.) in Côte D'ivoire

Post-harvest fruit diseases, mainly due to fungi microscopic, constitute one of the main factors of fruit deterioration during their conservation. Unlike chemical control, biological control is more beneficial given its ecological and health nature for the consumer. However, this fight could have impacts on biochemical parameters and organoleptic of preserved fruits. The objective of this study is to highlight the inhibitory activity of bacterial biocontrol agents isolated from the rhizosphere of the cashew tree on the germs responsible for post-harvest spoilage of the orange. To do this, 300 oranges were collected from the fruit market in Côte d’Ivoire. The flora fungal spoilage of these oranges was isolated on PDA medium and conservation tests of the oranges with the supernatant of bacterial biocontrol agents were carried out. The results obtained made it possible to identify three (3) genera of fungi on spoiled oranges including Colletotrichum, Alternaria and Lasiodiplodia with respective isolation frequencies of 11%, 33% and 56%. Also, preserving the oranges with the supernatant of the bacterial biocontrol agents made it possible, over 14 days, to note an absence of growth of fungi and no sign of spoilage unlike the control oranges.