Assessing the Effect of Processing Techniques on Physical Attribute, Storage and Nutritional Composition of Wild Mushroom (Termitomyces Spp) and Oyster Mushroom (Pleurotus Ostreatus)

Abstract

The study is aimed at assessing the effect of processing techniques on physical attribute, storage and nutritional composition of wild mushroom (Termitomyces spp) and oyster mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus) at the Nutrition Laboratory of Noguchi Memorial Institute, Legon. A structured questionnaire was used to collect information on farmer’s methods of harvesting, managing and reducing postharvest losses of wild mushrooms. The questionnaire was pre-tested on 50 participants that were randomly selected from the Kpelezo community. Fresh oyster and wild mushrooms harvested from wheat straw and termite hill respectively were procured for the study. The fresh mushrooms were processed using sun drying, baking with sun drying, blanching with sun drying and mud oven drying. Proximate composition analysis was carried out on the fresh and the processed samples to determine the nutrient composition using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer. It was observed that mud oven dried preserved the nutrient composition of the mushroom better than the other methods. Blanched samples had lower nutrient composition due to leaching of the nutrient into the salt solution. Sun dried oyster mushroom maintained its original colour and flavour but had higher moisture content. All the other processed products had a creamy and brown colour. Products stored in the refrigerator had lower moisture content as compared to those stored at room temperature due to moisture ingress from the product to the storage environment. The differences in moisture contents between the two packaging materials were insignificant.