Mayonnaise is an oil-in-water emulsion rich in calorie, micronutrients and fat-soluble vitamins which is produced from dominantly vegetable oil. African pear oil is a highly unsaturated oil, domestically and commercially underutilize with tonnage of postharvest losses. It presently, has little or no industrial attraction for use as commercial ingredient for food production and formulation. The aim therefore is to improve the commercial value of African pear pulp oil for use as a main ingredient in food applications, hence improving its utilization and reducing postharvest losses. Oil was extracted from African pear through Soxhlet extraction using n-hexane as the solvent and the extracted oil was blended with soybean oil in the following ratios: SO100:APO0 (Control), SO0:APO100, SO85:APO15, SO75:APO25, SO65:APO35, and SO50:APO50 for the production of mayonnaise. Some physicochemical properties of the oil blends were evaluated while proximate and sensory properties were also evaluated in the produced mayonnaise. Blending increased theiodine, acid and free fatty acid values of the oil blends and decreased significantly (p < 0.05) the peroxide value. The values ranged from 30.65 to 124.00 g iodine 100g–1, 6.85 to 2.57 mg KOH g–1, 5.03 to 1.91% and 2.62 to 3.50 meq O2 kg–1 for iodine, acid, free fatty acid and peroxide values, respectively. The proximate composition parameters of the mayonnaise samples increased significantly (p < 0.05) after blending. The values ranged from 32.65 to 35.04% for moisture, 1.12 to 1.44% for ash, 30.15 to 37.15% for fat, 1.93 to 2.31% for protein and 25.87 to 34.15% for carbohydrate. Significant improvement was recorded in the values of vitamin E, iodine and viscosity values of the mayonnaise samples after blending compared to the control with values ranging from 4.97 to 22.60 mg 100g–1 for vitamin E, 28.70 to 88.10 g iodine 100g–1 for iodine value and 24.70 to 30.13 Pa.s for viscosity. Sensory evaluation showed that the mayonnaise samples were generally acceptable by the panelists. Conclusively, blending soybean oil with African pear oil up to 50:50 could be used in the production of acceptable mayonnaise with higher fat, protein, ash, vitamin E, iodine value and viscosity, thereby reducing its postharvest losses through improved utilization.

Meat is a good source of quality protein but undergoes rapid deterioration due to physical, chemical and microbial influence. Hence, the need to develop a nutrient-dense product like kilishi with significant storage stability, increased cost efficiency, increased variety and promote food security. Kilishi was produced from different meat sources; beef (KB), chicken (KC), chevon (KV) and mutton (KM) and was assessed for proximate, physicochemical, mineral compositions, microbial quality and sensory properties using standard methods. The result showed proximate composition to range from 8.97 to 11.34%, 3.94 to 6.31%, 16.21 to 27.31%, 21.38 to 23.12% and 37.43 to 45.90% for moisture, ash, fat, protein and carbohydrate contents. Physicochemical properties ranged from  0.08 to 0.18 meg O2/kg for peroxide value, 0.06 - 0.41 TBARS/g for thiobarbituric acid value, 6.91 to7.54 for colour, 6.65 to 7.30 for pH and 61.25 to 69.40 mg/ml for solubility. Mineral composition showed that mutton meat kilishi (KM) had higher calcium (51.14 mg/100 g), magnesium (40.04 mg/100 g) and sodium (132.75 mg/100 g) contents while beef kilishi (KB) had the highest iron (8.24 mg/100 g) contents. Microbiologically, the kilishi samples were fit and safe for consumption. The organoleptic study revealed consumers’ preference for beef samples. Kilishi production improved the nutrient density, stability and safety of meat from their respective meat sources, and will serve as a viable means of meat storage in low-income countries.

Tomato fruits suffer postharvest losses due to poor storage facilities. One of the few efficient ways of preserving the nutrients, ensuring the availability of tomato all year round and increasing the bioavailability of lycopene is through processing tomato into a paste. In this study, selected tomato-paste brands sold in Kano market were evaluated for their qualities with the aim to identify possible adulteration. A total of eight different tomato-paste brands were collected from Yankura market in Kano. The physicochemical properties, proximate, lycopene and vitamin C contents and microbial quality were determined. The results showed that the tomato pastes had high moisture content (89.27-91.11 %) and low amount of ash (1.06-0.72 %), protein (3.28-1.64 %), fat (1.09-0.81 %) and carbohydrate (6.32-4.42%). The pH (3.73-4.35) and acidity (0.36-0.49%) of the samples were within the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) recommended limit for tomato pastes. The total solids (8.89-12.26%) of the tomato pastes were below the CAC recommended limit which is evident in their low viscosity (210.70-270.20 mPas) values. Microbiologically, the tomato pastes exceeded the CAC maximum limit (10 cfu/g) for coliform content. However, the tomato pastes were rich in vitamin C (19.36-23.58 mg/100 g) and contain an appreciable concentration of lycopene (20.35-27.92 mg/kg). Importantly, they are free from adulteration. Practical application The tomato pastes evaluated in this study is largely popular in the Nigerian market, particularly Kano, leading to their wide consumption. The data obtained can be used to provide informative assessment on the quality of tomato pastes sold in Kano, thereby informing end-users on their quality status, providing recommendations to manufacturers on possible improvements on the quality of their products as well as attract the attention of regulatory agencies on the need to critically assess the quality of imported and locally produced tomato pastes and ensure they meet quality standards before they are launched into the market.

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This study evaluated the quality characteristics of strips produced from blends (%) of soybean and cassava flours. Wholesome cassava roots and soybean grains were procured and processed into flours. Seven blends of soybean and cassava flour blends were formulated (0:100, 100:0, 50:50, 40:60, 20:80, 60:40 and 80:20) while 100% wheat flour served as control. Strips were produced from the blends. The composite flours were analyzed for their functional properties while the proximate, mineral, vitamin, antinutrient contents and sensory characteristics (assessed by 25 panelists) of the strips were assessed. The statistical analysis was carried out using one-way ANOVA at 95% confidence level. The functional properties ranged from 0.53 to 0.77 g/mL for bulk density, 3.76 to 12.88% for foam capacity, 1.92 to 49.00% for foam stability, 108.00 to 204.00 g/mL for oil absorption capacity, 81.00 to 140.50 g/mL for water absorption capacity and 61.07 to 87.00°C for gelatinization temperature. The results of proximate analysis ranged from 1.44 to 3.46% for moisture, 1.63 to 3.91% for ash, 2.04 to 10.76% for fat, 0.18 to 1.37% for crude fibre, 4.07 to 24.16% for protein and 60.46 to 88.10% for carbohydrate. The phytate, tannin, trypsin inhibitor, saponin and hydrogen cyanide ranged from 0.22 to 5.59 mg/100g, 0.34 to 4.13 mg/100g, 0.04 to 1.69 mg/100g, 0.02 to 0.36 mg/100g and 0.00 to 2.11 mg/100g respectively. Sensory analysis revealed that 80% soybean flour and 20% cassava flour possessed better organoleptic characteristics. Production of strips from blends of soybean and cassava flours improved the nutrient composition, sensory properties with acceptable/safe antinutrient limit which can be optimized for value addition.