Byung-Taek Oh and Palanivel Velmurugan

 Division of Biotechnology, College of Environmental and Bioresource Sciences  Chonbuk National University, Iksan, Jeonbuk 570-752, South Korea

The aim of the present work is to investigate the feasibility of corncob powder as a substrate for the production of pigments by Monascus purpureus in solid-state fermentation (SSF). A pigment yield of 20 OD Units/g dry fermented substrate was achieved by employing corncob powder. The powder was soaked in sterile water at 60 °C for 48 hours under the conditions of 150 strokes/minutes, 60% initial moisture content, 30 °C incubation temperature, 10 ´ 10⁴ spores/g dry substrate inoculums and incubated for a period of seven days. The color of the pigments was stable over a wide range of pH, apparently due to the buffering nature of the substrate, which could be significant criteria for its scope in food applications. To the best of our knowledge this is the first report on pigment production using corncob powder in SSF.