Nutritional value upgrading of maize stalk by using Pleurotus ostreatus and Saccharomyces cerevisiae in solid state fermentation

Pleurotus ostreatus and Saccharomyces cerevisiae were used in combined mixture to upgrade the nutritional value of maize stalks using solid state fermentation technique. The chemical composition and in vitro digestibility of the resulted protein enriched product were determined. Single P. ostreatus treatment of maize stalks gave lower protein content when compared to simultaneously double treated with P. ostreatus and S. cerevisiae. The crude protein increased from 3.60% to 11.80% when S. cerevisiae was used as biological additive material after incubation of 7 days at 28°C. Cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin showed gradual decrease with increasing incubation time of the fermentation process, however, in vitro disappearance increased.