Title: Comparative effect of lemongrass pre-treatment on the storage quality of sun and solar dried Brycinus nurse from Lake Albert, Uganda

Malnutrition is a serious problem that affects many people in Uganda (USAID, 2021). Increased consumption of fish, in addition to other foods, could reduce this problem because of its high protein and micronutrient composition. Large fish species are expensive, and the small pelagic fishery sector faces high post-harvest losses. The high fat content (14-20%) in Brycinus nurse increases its level of oxidation, thus increasing its spoilage rate, resulting in bad odour. Fish is then converted to animal consumption instead of human consumption. The effect of solar tent drying and lemongrass pre-treatment at 0-, 15-, and 30-minute soaking times on Brycinus nurse was evaluated. However, the open sun drying method used for processing is highly dependent on the prevailing weather conditions. Samples were analyzed for lipid hydrolysis and oxidation, as well as protein degradation, microbiological evaluation, and basic composition characteristics. There were significant differences in processing odour, water activity, and free fatty acids between the open sundried and solar dried groups (p<0.05). The lemongrass treatment (15 min) masked the bad odour of the fish after four weeks of storage. The microbial load decreased as water activity decreased. The water activity of the solar-dried groups was lower than 0.6, and TVC count was also lower for the solar-dried groups than for open-sun-dried groups. This trigger lowers FFA levels by reducing the quantity of inducers of lipid hydrolysis. Therefore, solar drying improved the quality parameters of the samples during storage compared to the open drying method, and lemongrass at 15 min in the solar drier soaking time yielded better processing odour compared to the other treatments.