Browsing by Author "Madilo, F.K."
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Item Process and Product Characterization of Aliha, A Maize-Based Ghanaian Indigenous Fermented Beverage(Journal of Food Quality, 2022) Madilo, F.K.; Kunadu, A.P.H.; Tano-Debrah, K.; Mensah, G.I.; Saalia, K.F.; Kolanisi, U.Aliha is a maize-based traditional fermented beverage prepared and consumed in Ghana, predominantly in the Volta Region and other parts of Ghana. ,e study sought to characterize the production processes, the nutritional values, and microbial composition of aliha. A total of 126 aliha producers in the Volta, Greater Accra, and Ashanti Regions were sampled using snowballing to identify and to recruit the producers for the study, using a pretested self-administered questionnaire. ,e physicochemical and microbial composition were carried out using standard methods. Four different production techniques were identified across the production sites. ,e variations identified during the production existed across the production chain. ,e main ingredients used for aliha production are corn, caramel, sugar, and water. However, aliha produced by the ‘original’ method (DN2) presented the best nutritional values (proteins, energy, and calcium), followed by backslopping techniques, AG1 (total carbohydrates and ash), and AG2 (fats and oils and phosphorus). Fungi and Enterobacteriaceae dominated the initial fermentation stages (24 h) with low acid values. However, as the fermentation time increased from 24 h to 72 h, the acid contents of the fermenting beverage increased sharply leading to a drastic reduction of fungi and Enterobacteriaceae contents with increasing records of lactic acid bacterial counts. Even though DN2 presented the best nutritional values, it was highly contaminated. Hence, the producers must be encouraged to use backslopping techniques for safety and to shorten the duration of production.Item Self-reported use and understanding of food label information among tertiary education students in Ghana(Food Control, 2019-08-23) Kunadu, A.P.H.; Madilo, F.K.; Owusu-Kwarteng, J.; Tano-Debrah, K.Food packaging labels attract consumers' attention in stores and market areas, and communicates relevant food safety and nutrition information that allows them to distinguish between food product alternatives. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess consumers' self-reported use, knowledge and understanding of food labels among tertiary students in Ghana. A validated questionnaire was used to recruit 1478 students from fourteen (14) public tertiary institutions across the 10 regions to collect information on demographic characteristics of respondents, usage and understanding of information provided on food labels, using proportional quota and convenience sampling techniques. The majority of respondents 956 (64.7%) were between the ages of 21 and 30. A total of 463 (31.3%) students read food label ‘very often’ while 892 (60.4%) read food labels ‘sometimes’. While 963 (65.2%) of respondents indicated that information on food labels are very important, 934 (63.2%) still believe that food label information are often not credible. Respondents considered expiring date 1269 (85.9%), date of manufacture 1106 (74.8%) and health warning 1097 (74.2%) as the top three very important information on food labels whereas product value/weight, 654 (44.2%) was considered as least important in choosing particular food products. Respondents generally depend on television programs/advertisement, 1349 (91.3%); internets, 1290 (87.3%) and friends and neighbors, 1213 (82.1%) as sources of knowledge regarding food label information. When participants were provided with a sample food label to assess their understanding of food label information, 916 (62.0%) of respondents did not answer the question at all. Out of 562 (38%) who answered the question, only 243 (16.5%) correctly interpreted the information. No significant difference (P > 0.05) exist between ages, sexes, institutions, and university and training college students regarding their understanding of food label information. Eventhough tertiary education students in Ghana read and attach importance to food label information, they have limited understanding of the information provided on food labels.