APPROACH TOWARD MINIMIZING MICROBIAL CONTAMINATION OF MILK BY FLIES (Musca domestica) USING COLOUR REPELLANT

Abstract

Houseflies (Musca domestica) are vector of diseases carrying viruses, bacteria, fungi and many parasites. Poor hygienic practice in environment leads to the contamination of commercially sold milk by flies thereby transmitting pathogens. This work intends to use different coloured milk to determine the least attractive to houseflies to serve as repellant using a modified peet-grady testing method. Commercially sold milk was coloured using food colours to obtained yellow, blue, green, red and white milk. These were exposed for the period of 30 minutes to the flies with a count after every 10 minutes. In the first 10 minutes of exposure, blue milk attracted 12 flies, green color attracted 7 flies, red color attracted 6, white color attracted 5 and yellow color attracted 2. At the second 10 minutes of exposure, shows blue milk attracted 9 flies, green milk attracted 8 flies, red attracted 7, white attracted 4, and yellow attracted 2 flies.  On the third 10 minutes of exposure, the colors attracted 9, 7, 4, 3 and 2 house flies  respectively in that order of arrangement as in the above.