Carotenoid content, sensory properties and microbiological quality of stored yellow cassava Fufu

Abstract

The carotenoid content, sensory properties and microbiological assessment of stored cassava fufu from two cultivars of yellow cassava (TMS 01/1368 and TMS 01/1412) being multiplied for distribution in South-East and South-South Nigeria were investigated using standard techniques. There is scanty information on microbiological safety, carotenoid content, and sensory evaluation of reconstituted fufu from the newly released yellow cassava roots. That is the background against this study is carried out. In terms of carotenoid content, TMS 01/1368 had the highest carotenoid value of 7.76 μg/g and 7.48μg/g respectively, for both fresh root and fermented mash. While TMS 01/1412 had 6.26 μg/g carotenoid for fresh root and 6.69μg/g carotenoid for fermented mash. The sensory properties of the yellow cassava fufu samples revealed that they had no much difference in all the parameters and were acceptable. Results indicated acceptability of the yellow cassava cultivars and their use for fufu preparation. The pH decreased from an average of 4.66 on day one to 3.67 on the eight day for TMS 01/1368 while the cultivar TMS 01/1412 decreased from an average of 4.65 on day one to 3.54 on the eight day. The titratable acidity of the both samples did not show significant increase. The % moisture content increased from day one to day eight for the both cultivars. The values were (47.23% - 50.98%) for TMS 01/1368 and (52.04 - 60.12) for TMS 01/1412. The microbial counts increased from the initial average of 1.66 x 10⁵ cfu/g on day one to an average count of 11.6 x 10⁵ cfu/g on eight day for TMS 01/1368 while TMS 01/1412 increased from 2.33 x 10⁵ cfu/g on day one to an average count of 12.0 x10⁵ cfu/g on the eight day. The spoilage organisms associated with the products during storage include Staphylococcus areaus, Bacillus cereus, Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus flavus, Rhizopus stolonifer and Candida albicaus.

Key Words, Cassava, Fufu, Safety, pH, TTA, Moisture content, Microorganisms