Abstract
Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) is an important subsistence crop for many poor rural families in Africa. Cassava contains cyanogenic glucosides (linamarin and lotaustralin) which liberate hydrogen cyanide (HCN) during tuber processing. Once liberated, HCN attaches to the processed tuber. Continuous consumption of processed tuber containing high HCN concentration coupled with low protein intake causes Konzo – a paralyzing disorder that impacts children and women of childbearing age. There are ways to reduce HCN concentration during tuber processing; however, this can also reduce the overall starch content in the cassava tuber. A study comprising twenty treatments consisting of different combinations of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) fertilizer rates was initiated in 2013 in the coastal Dondo District of Mozambique to assess cassava tuber quality as measured by starch and HCN. Significant differences were observed in starch content (CSC) of unprocessed tubers due to combined addition of N, P and K fertilizer rates, sample size, and estimation procedure. However, no significant differences were observed in HCN concentration in tubers due to the addition of N, P and K fertilizer. The HCN concentration in cassava tuber appears to be a function of the physiology of the crop or possibly cassava variety rather than the environment or conditions under which the crop is grown.
Highlights
Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) is a perennial tuber crop that originated in South America (Hillocks et al, 2002a)
Our findings suggest that cassava starch content (%) is influenced by N, P and K fertilizer rate combination, but that these differences may be confounded by sampling and content determination procedures
cassava starch content (CSC) estimated using Equations (1), (2), and (3) did not differ significantly; all three estimation Equations (1), (2), and (3) used in the Underwater Weight Method underestimated actual CSC compared with the results obtained using the Megazyme Total Starch Procedure
Summary
Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) is a perennial tuber crop that originated in South America (Hillocks et al, 2002a). Cassava is a major staple and an important source of calories to more than half a billion people in Africa, Asia, and Latin America (Rosenthal & Ort, 2011; FAO, 2013). Today Africa is the foremost cassava producing region with over half of the global production (FAO, 2013). Cassava was introduced in Mozambique in the 1750s (Benesi, 2005). Today Mozambique is the fifth largest producer of cassava in Africa and second only to Angola in Southern Africa with an estimated average annual yield of ~6 tons per ha (Dias, 2012). Cassava is a major food crop and the second most important crop in Mozambique following maize (Ministério da Indústria e Comércio/Direcção Nacional do Comércio, 2007). According to Gwarizimba (2009), cassava contributes 6 percent of the country’s GDP and 45 percent of the diet, approximately 628 kcal per person per day (Promar Consulting, 2011)
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