AGRICULTURE AND BIOLOGY JOURNAL OF NORTH AMERICA Post-harvest attributes and consumer acceptability of green mealies (Zea mays) stored at ambient and refrigeration temperatures in Swaziland

ABSTRACT Maize (Zea mays) is the staple food of the Swazi people and many traditional societies in Africa. When freshly harvested, the product is referred to as green mealies and is highly valued in Southern Africa. Green mealies are highly perishable compared to dry maize because of their high water content which affects their keeping quality. There is need therefore to find suitable post-harvest handling methods to retard deterioration processes of green mealies. Thus, the main objective of this study was to investigate the consumer acceptability of boiled green mealies which were initially stored at various temperatures ( 1.5 o C, 5°C and ambient temperature). The study also investigated the effect of storing samples under these conditions on total soluble solids (TSS) and mass loss. The study was carried out at the Food Science and Technology Laboratory of the University of Swaziland, Luyengo Campus. Two experiments were conducted where, in each experiment, there were three treatments (storage at 1.5 o C, 5 o C or ambient temperature) replicated three times. The treatments were arranged in a randomized complete block design (RCBD). Data pertaining to TSS, mass loss and sensory evaluation at 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 days after storage were collected. Total soluble solids ranged between 2.55 and 6.3% and mean mass loss ranged from 2.68 to 11.53 % by the end of the experiment. There were significant (p<0.05) differences with respect to the acceptance of the samples from various storage temperatures by a consumer panel. Green mealie bread or bolied green mealies previously stored at 1.5 o C were most accepted by consumers followed by samples stored at 5 o C and lastly those stored at ambient temperature. All the samples of green mealies lost quality to a certain extent during storage which showed that loss of quality can not be stopped but can be minimised