Project Materials

EFFECTS OF PROCESSING METHODS ON THE PHYSICOCHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF SWEET POTATO AND SORGHUM

ABSTRACT

“The effects of processing methods on the physico-chemical properties of sweet potato and sorghum flour” were assessed in this study. The sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas), a member of the convolvulaceae family, is a significant food crop in tropical and sub-tropical regions. Vitamins, minerals, dietary fibre, and antioxidants like β-carotene, anthocyanins, phenolic acids, and tocopherol are all abundant in sweet potatoes. Sweet potatoes’ proximate composition was identified as consisting of moisture, lipids, ash, protein, carbs, and fibre. The techniques utilised to practically carry out the analysis differ depending on the food material. Together with phenol oxidase, pasting qualities, minerals, and sugar levels, the antioxidants were also identified. Tropical plants in the poaceae family include sorghum. Over one-third of sorghum is cultivated for human use. With phenol oxidase excluded, the studies performed on sweet potatoes are identical to those conducted on sorghum.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

A member of the convolvulaceae family, sweet potatoes (Ipomoea batatas) are a major food crop in tropical and subtropical regions. More than 100 countries cultivate it. Woolfe (1992).

China is the world’s greatest producer, followed by Uganda, and Nigeria is the third-largest. According to Bouwkamp (1985), sweet potatoes rank seventh in the world’s food crops, third in terms of production value, and fifth in terms of the number of calories they contribute to the human diet.

Dietary fibre, minerals, vitamins, and antioxidants like ß-carotene, anthocyanins, tocopherol, and phenolic acids are all abundant in sweet potatoes. Carotenoids and phenolic chemicals, in addition to their antioxidant properties, give sweet potatoes their characteristic flesh hues (cream, deep yellow, orange, and purple).

In Nigerian meals, sweet potatoes are combined with rice, cowpeas, and plantains. It is also gaining popularity as an alternative to garri and yam.

For bread, biscuits, and other confections, it can be reconstituted into fofoo or combined with other types of carbohydrate flour, such as wheat (Triticum aestivum) and cassava (Manihot esculenta) (Woolfe, 1992).

Protein-rich leaves and orange meat variants with high beta carotene content are crucial in the fight against vitamin A deficiency, particularly in young children.

One of the most significant crops in Africa, Asia, and Latin America is sorghum (Sorghum bicolour), a tropical plant that belongs to the poaceae family.

Sorghum is grown directly for human consumption in excess of 35% of cases. The remainder is mostly utilised to produce industrial goods, alcohol, and animal feed (FAO, 1995). Better breeding conditions and improved varieties have led to an increase in the current yearly yield of 60 million tonnes.

Every year, sorghum breeders release a number of enhanced sorghum varieties that are suited to semi-arid tropical climates. Food security greatly depends on the selection of types from this vast biodiversity that satisfy particular local food and industrial needs.

The demand for sorghum is rising in emerging nations generally and in West Africa specifically. This is a result of the nation’s policy to increase its industrial and processing use in addition to the population growth.

With regard to food quality, it is necessary to further characterise the more than 7000 known variants of sorghum at the molecular level. Obtaining high-quality grain is essential to turning sorghum into palatable food products. Sorghum is a household source of income in addition to being essential to Africa’s food security.

Ungerminated sorghum grains are typically used in West Africa to make couscous, porridge, and “to.” Malted sorghum is used to make infant porridge, non-fermented drinks, and the indigenous beer “dolo,” which is reddish, hazy, or opaque.

Like all cereals, sorghum grains are mostly made of starch. The goal of this endeavour is to create a diet that is low in sugar and rich in nutrients for people with diabetes.