The improvement of yam (Dioscorea spp) nutritional quality is now an important challenge for yam breeders and producers. In order to identify yam parents with high technological potential for their use in varietal improvement schemes, two most dominant cooking forms (boiled and pounded) were considered. A total of 48 yam (Dioscorea rotundata Poir.) cultivars used as parents in Benin yam breeding program were evaluated. Trained and untrained panelists were invited to taste coded and randomized samples of boiled and pounded yam for the various tests using appropriate methods. Attributes considered for the evaluation of the sensory profile were attractiveness, sweetness, texture, elasticity, presence of lumpsand cooking time. The hedonic test was based on five scales ranging from very unpleasant to very pleasant. Principal component Analysis carried out on the preferences of the tasters showed that 29.16% of the cultivars are preferred in the boiled form, (27.08%) in pounded form and 43.75% in both forms. In the hedonic test, 15% of the cultivars were rated as very pleasant, 54% were pleasant, 8.33% were neither-pleasant nor-unpleasant (neutral), 14.58% unpleasant and 7.25 very unpleasant. The mean score of texture, softness, elasticity and color, vary respectively from 1 to 3.16; 0.75 to 3.25; 0.98 to 3.75; and 0.66 to 1.34. The principal component analysis revealed six organoleptic groups of interest. Sweetness, texture, and attractiveness were found to determine the general preference for boiled yams while for the pounded yam preference was based on elasticity, softness and texture. Best parents identified for both boiled and pounded yam were Boniakpa, Djilaja, DrA39-2003, Kpagninan, Kpounan, Krachi, Laboko, Tarayè and Wouroutani. Their use in the development of new varieties to respond to consumers and processors needs was highly recommended.

Forty-eight cultivars (44 landraces and 4 hybrids) of white yam (Dioscorea rotundata Poir.) selected as parents for a breeding program in Benin were evaluated for proximate, sugars and mineral composition using standard AOAC methods. The results revealed a great variation among cultivars for fat (2.4-18 mg/g), protein (0.40-19.31 mg/g), total sugars (28.60-498.97 mg/g), reducing sugars (50-156.27 mg/g), and starch (44.82-400.41 mg/g) content. Variations in mineral content (mg/100g) were also noted among cultivars for Calcium (12.20 to 560.80 mg), Magnesium, (1.65 to 1630.80 mg), Iron, (1.79 to 22.60 mg), Zinc (0.55 to 20.03 mg) and Phosphorus (13.08 to 152.48 mg). Fat content were positively correlated with starch and negatively correlated with protein content. UPGMA cluster analysis assembled cultivars into 03 groups (G1, G2, G3). Cultivars of G1 and G3 are characterized with higher levels of sugars, lipids, proteins, starch, dry matter and significant mineral content. They appear to be more promising for involvement in breeding programs.