Abstract
Ingestion of cyanohydrins has been linked to acute and chronic toxicities even death on several occasions in Nigeria. The need for periodic evaluation of cassava based food products to ensure compliance to standard specifications is therefore imperative. This study was conducted to investigate the concentration of hydrogen cyanide and other quality parameters of gari samples collected from Akwanga main market in the month of July, 2019. A total of 21 samples of gari (16 white and 5 yellow varieties) were collected using systematic random sampling techniques. Hydrogen cyanide, proximate compositions, physicochemical and functional properties were carried out following standard procedures. Results showed that white and yellow gari contained hydrogen cyanide in the range of 3.68–19.37 mg/kg and 13.32–16.17 mg/kg respectively. High moisture (11.38–16.74%) and crude fibre (1.51–3.44%) contents were recovered in some white gari and all the yellow gari samples. The results obtained for pH (4.44–5.95) and titratable acidity (0.11–0.67%) indicated low acid concentrations in both gari varieties. The bulk density, water absorption capacity, swelling index and least gelation capacity varied significantly in white and yellow gari samples as from 0.12–0.87 g/mL, 4.06–5.40 mL/g, 0.47–4.40 and 3.00–6.70% respectively. The concentrations of hydrogen cyanide in all the samples were higher than maximum value (2.0 mg/kg) considered as National Standard Specifications for gari coupled with high moisture contents above the safe level which might predispose them to mould growth that could render them unsafe for human consumption.
Highlights
Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz), known as manioc or yuca in some parts of the world, has been a major food crop in Nigeria for more than a century and It’s considered an important source of energy in the country’s diets [1,2,3] and many other parts of the world [4]
In Nigeria, cassava roots has been processed into a number of invaluable products including ‘gari’, bread, ‘fufu’, tapioca, cassava chips, high quality cassava flour (HQCF), ‘abacha’, starch and many more, of which some are highly priced in large cities due to rapid urbanization throughout Sub-Saharan Africa [7,8]
The hydrogen cyanide contents of yellow gari collected from Akwanga, Nasarawa State were shown in Figure 2
Summary
Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz), known as manioc or yuca in some parts of the world, has been a major food crop in Nigeria for more than a century and It’s considered an important source of energy in the country’s diets [1,2,3] and many other parts of the world [4]. The roots of cassava are processed or eaten by 500 million people a day in Africa, where it is a staple for 40% of the population [5]. As one of different kinds of food products that can be obtained from fresh cassava roots is a very popular food in West Africa and it is fast becoming a marketable product [1, 8]. It is a dry, crispy, creamy-white or yellow and granular in nature [8]. The processing involves; sorting/peeling the roots, washing, crushing/grating into cassava mash, fermenting the mash (48 hr), pressing, sifting/sieved into small pieces (known as grits), further the grits are garified/roasted/fried/toasted to make the final crispy product called
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