Disinfection of rice seeds prior to sprouting

Different methods of rice seeds disinfection were investigated in order to limit the development of micro-organisms during sprouting. At room temperature, sodium hypochlorite at 1000 ppm or hydrogen peroxide resulted in a 2 to 3 log decrease in aerobic plate counts. Ethanol was found to inhibit germination, thus prohibiting its use. The limited effectiveness of decontaminating solutions could be because they did not access the bacteria, which was supported by the results of washing with benzalkonium chloride. Greater reduction (up to 5 log) was obtained by soaking seeds for 5 min in a sodium hypochlorite solution at 60 degrees C.