Quality Evaluation of Edible Fish Flour Prepared from Indian Oil Sardine (Sardinella longiceps )

Abstract

The objective of the study was to use fatty fish (Sardinella longiceps) for fish flour preparation intended for human consumption. Fish flour was prepared, vacuum packed and its quality evaluation during storage at room temperature was done. Among the quality parameters, trimethyl amino nitrogen (TMA-N) and total volatile basic nitrogen (TVB-N) of fish flour were ranged from 0.03 to 7.08 mg% and 1.72 to 14.5 mg%, respectively, during 6 months of storage and found within the acceptable limits. Free fatty acid (FFA), thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) and peroxide value (PV) of fish flour were found to be 0.06% oleic acid, 2.17 mg malondialdehyde/kg of fat and 7.14 meq of O2/kg of fat at the end of sixth month of storage period and were found very well within the acceptable limits. There was slight increase in the pH value from 6.7 at zeroth day to 7.1 at sixth month of storage. Redness (a*) and yellowness (b*) values were increased with the prolonged storage period. Organoleptic characteristics such as appearance, odor and flavor were also evaluated by 10 expert panelists in 9-point hedonic scale and the product was accepted by the panelists. The product was acceptable up to 6 months in vacuum packed condition at room temperature. Practical Applications Fish flour is a dried powder, prepared from dressed fish and highly nutritious which contains high quality proteins with all essential amino acids and minerals. Also, it contains high amount of energy could be supplemented to the food items. In this study we have tried to establish the storage life of fish flour from Indian oil sardine by evaluating the biochemical changes in the same. This understanding will not only provide value addition but also give better economic returns to the fishing sector.