Evaluation of Rice Brands by Sensory Qualities

A purposively selected 20 member sensory panel was used to do sensory and cooking qualities assessment of locally processed rice brands and popularly imported rice brands consumed by most Nigerians. The local brands are ‘Enyi, Lobi, Eagle and Veetee; while the imported brands are ‘Tomato and Caprice. The results showed that Olam was significantly better and distinguishable from Abakaliki, Tomato and Caprice brands for colour (P<0.05); Olam was significantly better than Caprice for flavour (P<0.05); Olam was significantly better than Abakaliki and Caprice for sogginess (P<0.05); Olam was significantly preferred than Veetee for stickness (P<0.05); Olam was significantly better than the other brands for taste (P<0.05); Olam was significantly preferred to other brands for texture (P<0.05) and significantly better from Tomato for general acceptability (P<0.05). On assessment of rice grains, the results also showed that Enyi and Abakaliki had poor grain colour rating (P<0.05); the general  acceptability of Olam, Caprice and Veetee grain brands were significantly better than the other brands (P<0.05). Generally speaking, the results of the analyses showed that local brands of processed rice competed well with imported brands for sensory qualities.Key words: rice brands, sensory qualities, consumer preference, general acceptabilit

Effects of drying of cowpea grains on consumer acceptability of moin-moin

A drying test was conducted on wet de-hulled cowpea grains to ascertain the effects of drying at 60oC, 70oC, 80oC, and 90oC on the physico-chemical properties and sensory evaluation (consumer acceptability) of moin-moin from different flours. Chemical analyses were conducted on the flour to ascertain the effect of different levels of drying on the protein, carbohydrate and water binding capacity of the flours. A fifteen member trained panelist was purposively chosen to assess the quality of the moin-moin produced. The results of the analysis revealed that temperature of drying affected the protein, carbohydrate and water binding capacity of cowpea flour. The different drying scenarios also affected the acceptability of moin-moin by consumers. The study showed that moin-moin produced from a 60oC dried cowpea grains was sensorily preferred and accepted by consumers. Key words: drying, cowpea flour, moin-moin, consumer preference Journal of Agriculture and Food Sciences Vol. 4 (2) 2006: pp. 125-13

Transmission Dynamics of Urogenital Schistosomiasis in the Rural Community of Ebonyi State, South Eastern Nigeria

This study accessed the dynamics of urogenital schistosomiasis transmission in Nkalagu Community. A total of 500 mid-day urine samples were collected and transported to Microbiology Laboratory, Ebonyi State University, for analysis. 10ml each of the urine samples was centrifuged at 2500 rpm for 5 minutes. Transmission potential of snail intermediate host of Schistosomes collected from different sampling station at the transmission sites within the study community was equally accessed. The snail species collected were placed individually into a clean beaker with little quantity of water and then subjected to shedding light for 2 hours. Data obtained were entered in excel spread sheet and analyzed using chi square test. The result obtained shows that 205 (41%) out of 500 individuals examined were excreting S. haematobium ova in their urine. The highest prevalence of infection (23%) was found among 11-20-year age groups. Males were more infected (25.4%) than their female counterparts (15.6%), although this was not statistically significant (p > 0.05). A total of 283 snails belonging to two Bulinus species (B. globosus and B. truncatus) were collected from the four sites sampled. Bulinus globosus recorded the highest species abundance (177) with the highest occurrence in site A. 52 (18.4%) out of 283 snails collected were infected with cercariae, and the highest cercariae infection (12.0%) was recorded among B. globosus. With prevalence of 41% among the human population and the prevalence of 18.4% patent infection among the snail intermediate hosts, urogenital schistosomiasis is still a public health problem in the study area and falls within the WHO classification of endemic area. Public health campaign is recommended in order to educate the people on the mode of transmission and control of the disease