Abstract
Post-harvest losses of fruits and vegetables in Uganda are estimated at 30% which is approximately 4 billion shillings lost annually. This is due to limited knowledge on value addition and preservation technologies being unaffordable. This study sought to add value to fruits and vegetables with a focus on mangoes, tomatoes, and carrots produced locally. The study determined the effect of processing conditions and addition of fruits and vegetables on the physico-chemical and sensory properties of tomato ketchup. Tomatoes were replaced with mangoes in increments of 10% up to 50% while keeping carrot levels constant at 5%. The best sensory properties were observed in the treatment that contained 15% mango. The Physico-chemical and sensory properties of ketchup were enhanced by the addition of fruits and vegetables up to 20%. The sensory evaluation revealed that ketchup prepared by the addition of fruits and vegetables (local mangoes and carrots) was preferred as compared to the control sample at 0% mango. The color of ketchup was affected by the incorporation of mangoes and carrots and it was acceptable up to at 5% carrot and 15% mango including taste, appearance, flavor, mouthfeel and aroma. The best treatment was then subjected to different processing conditions at different holding times and temperatures of 5, 10 and 15 minutes at temperatures of 70, 75, 80, 85, 90 and 100 degrees Celsius respectively. The best conditions were observed to be between 80℃ and 85℃ and 10 to 15 minutes holding time. It was also evident that time and temperature had a significant (p<0.05) effect on the Physico-chemical properties of ketchup.
Highlights
In Uganda, horticulture is one of the fastest-growing branches among the agricultural sectors (Ssemwanga, 2010), contributing 1% to the total world vegetable and fruits production
On addition of mangoes and carrots to tomato ketchup, there was a drastic increase in the levels of ascorbic acid
The levels of ascorbic acid had their lowest levels in treatment A with 100% tomato and their peak in treatment F in which 50% of the tomatoes were replaced with mangoes and carrots
Summary
In Uganda, horticulture is one of the fastest-growing branches among the agricultural sectors (Ssemwanga, 2010), contributing 1% to the total world vegetable and fruits production. Post-harvest losses are estimated at 15-30 percent according to MAAIF (2016) due to high susceptibility to spoilage caused by the inefficient post-harvest technologies, aggravate the low fruit and vegetable consumption per capita per day in Uganda. Fruit and vegetable production are currently challenged by limited land, water, and increased weather variability due to climate change (La Pena & Hughes 2007, Moretti, Mattos et al, 2010). These losses do not merely reduce the food available for human consumption and cause negative externalities to society through costs of waste management, greenhouse gas production, and loss of scarce resources used in their production
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