Oyedokun, J

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African locust bean (ALB) (Parkia biglobosa) seeds were subjected to spontaneous and Bacillus subtilis BaAP3 fermentation. The nutritional, colour and sensory properties of the samples were determined and comparatively assessed using standard methods. There was no significant difference in the moisture, dry matter, and ash contents of spontaneously fermented (SF) and Bacillus subtilis BaAP3 fermented (BSF) samples. The crude protein increased, while carbohydrate content reduced, significantly (p<0.05) for both SF and BSF samples. The crude fat content for SF sample increased significantly (p<0.05) from 44.36 to 53.91 g/100g, while there was no significant difference in crude fat values for BSF. There was no significant difference in the crude fibre contents of SF samples while that of BSF decreased significantly (p<0.05). The calcium content reduced from 1075.00 to 1010.33 mgkg-1 for SF sample and increased from 1179 to 1221.33 mgkg-1 for BSF sample. The sodium and copper contents of both SF and BSF samples reduced significantly (p<0.05) on fermentation. The sodium content reduced from 670.10 to 490.07 mgkg-1 for SF sample and from 740.20 to 600 mgkg-1 BSF sample, while copper content reduced from 5.00 to 3.00 mgkg-1 for both samples. The magnesium, iron and zinc contents for SF and BSF samples were not significantly different. For potassium and phosphorus, the values increased for both samples. Potassium contents increased from 571.67 to 719 mgkg-1 and 580.00 to 631.67 mgkg-1 for SF and BSF samples, respectively. While phosphorus content increased from 2856.5 to 3244.4 mgkg-1 for SF sample and 2810.80 to 2970.17 mgkg-1 for BSF sample. There was no significant difference (P >0.05) in the colour parameters for both samples and the values of the parameters suggested that the colour was grayish. The sensory properties of the fermented products indicated that BSF seed was preferred to SF seed in terms of consistency, texture and overall acceptability. The Bacillus subtilis BaAP3 strain could be effectively utilized for the fermentation of ALB seed for uniform product quality in the food condiment industry.