Contribution to improve dried meat (Kilishi) quality using an adapted hygrometer

Abstract

It is a most for each actor in Niger’s food production and distribution chain bears responsibility to take the necessary steps to ensure that the products placed on the market do not pose a risk to the health of consumers. Traditional kilishi products in Niger have evolved from natural drying. This study was aimed to determine the relative humidity of the kilishi in contribution to improve its quality. Three varieties of kilishi (ja, fari and rumuzu) samples were analyzed, using an adapted hygrometer at ambient temperature. The results revealed that from the reading of adapted hygrometer 78±1.42% of relative humidity for the kilishi ja; 62±1.83% for kilishi rumuzu and 53±0.67% for kilishi fari. The kilishi ja level of humidity (78%) found was higher than the normal which is 60 to 65%. The relative humidity results indicated that the evaluation on the kilishi varieties was an indicator of degree of dryness leading to improve its quality. It is therefore recommended that strict aseptic measures and proper drying should be observed during the production of kilishi in order to reduce the microbial load to an acceptable level.