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Research Article
Adaptation of an Underground Ventilated Pit for Potato Storage
Husen Bona*,
Teshome Wakeyo,
Tolasa Berhanu
Issue:
Volume 9, Issue 2, December 2025
Pages:
65-70
Received:
10 July 2025
Accepted:
4 August 2025
Published:
20 August 2025
Abstract: The potato, or Solanum tuberosum L. is a semi-perishable product. The entire potato production-consumption system depends on effective post-harvest technology and marketing due to the crop's bulk and perishability. Decomposition, deterioration, and physiological breakdown all lower potato quality and storage life. Relative humidity, air circulation, gas composition, and storage temperature all have a direct impact on these deteriorations. Maintaining tubers in their most marketable and edible state while ensuring a consistent supply of tubers for processing facilities and markets all year long is the goal of storage. The Jimma Zone in Dedo Woreda, a possible Keble for potato production, was used to store potatoes. In order to facilitate natural drainage, a dry location with a slightly raised slope was chosen. Bamboo was used to construct a horizontal ventilation system that was 2 meters long, 40 cm wide on the sides, and even in the middle of the pit. After covering the pit with rough eucalyptus poles and a board for strength, a layer of wood is applied to stop soil from slipping through. The mature, dry, healthy, and disease-free potatoes were kept in storage, while the others were left exposed and covered. The stored potato does not deteriorate or sprout for four months and twenty days.
Abstract: The potato, or Solanum tuberosum L. is a semi-perishable product. The entire potato production-consumption system depends on effective post-harvest technology and marketing due to the crop's bulk and perishability. Decomposition, deterioration, and physiological breakdown all lower potato quality and storage life. Relative humidity, air circulation...
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Review Article
Emerging Trends in Biomaterials for Sustainable Food Packaging: A Comprehensive Review
Alebachew Molla Nibret*
Issue:
Volume 9, Issue 2, December 2025
Pages:
71-77
Received:
9 September 2025
Accepted:
19 September 2025
Published:
10 October 2025
Abstract: Biomaterials for sustainable food packaging are gaining significant attention as environmentally friendly alternatives to conventional plastic packaging. The increasing environmental concerns over conventional plastic food packaging have spurred significant research and development of biomaterial-based sustainable packaging alternatives. Biomaterials such as biodegradable polymers: including polylactic acid and polyhydroxy alkanoates along with ceramics, composites, and nanomaterials, demonstrate promising functionalities, including biodegradability, mechanical robustness, barrier properties, and antimicrobial activity. These materials arise from renewable sources and offer the potential to significantly reduce plastic pollution and carbon footprints associated with the food packaging industry. Recent advances in composite formulations and nanotechnology-enabled packaging have further enhanced their performance, making biomaterials viable contenders for diverse food packaging applications. However, technical challenges related to processing, cost, and shelf-life alongside safety and regulatory considerations remain major hurdles for widespread commercialization. Interdisciplinary research and industrial collaborations are crucial to overcoming these challenges, optimizing material properties, and ensuring consumer safety. Ultimately, biomaterials are poised to drive a paradigm shift towards sustainable, circular food packaging systems that align with global sustainability goals by reducing waste, conserving resources, and enhancing food preservation. The future of food packaging lies in biomaterials driving sustainable, circular systems aligned with global sustainability goals, with ongoing innovation, standardized testing, and supportive policies accelerating their global uptake. This review underscores the importance of continuous innovation, standardized evaluation methods, and supportive policies in accelerating the adoption of biomaterial-based food packaging solutions worldwide.
Abstract: Biomaterials for sustainable food packaging are gaining significant attention as environmentally friendly alternatives to conventional plastic packaging. The increasing environmental concerns over conventional plastic food packaging have spurred significant research and development of biomaterial-based sustainable packaging alternatives. Biomateria...
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Research Article
Optimization of Nixtamal Maize Flour Fortified with Sweet Potato and Egg for Masa Production
James Kator Asema*,
Bolanle Adenike Adejumo,
Olorunsogo Samuel Tunde,
Peter Ayodele Obasa
Issue:
Volume 9, Issue 2, December 2025
Pages:
78-84
Received:
18 December 2024
Accepted:
9 December 2025
Published:
29 December 2025
DOI:
10.11648/j.ijfet.20250902.13
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Abstract: Masa is a Spanish word that connotes all kinds of dough. It is usually brown in colour and round in shape with smooth surfaces. It is also known as waina– a cereal-based yeast fermented recipe consumed in Nigeria and other West African countries. The focus of the research is to formulate and optimize nixtamal maize flour fortified with sweet potato and egg for instant masa production. The maize flour, sweet potato flour and egg flour was used as the mixture components at varying levels. Since masa as a staple food is majorly consumed by over 80% of Northern Nigeria and produced from common cereal such as maize (Zee mays), rice (Oriza sativa), sorghum (sorghum vulgare) or millet (Pennisetum typhoideum). There is need for utilization of other available food component to enhance its nutritional content. D-optimal mixture experimental design was used with formulation constraints at varying levels: Nixtamal maize flour (40% – 80%), sweet potato flour (10% – 50%) and egg flour (10% – 30%). The maize flour was subjected to nixtamalization process using lime to enhance the nutritional composition of the produced fortified masa flour. The evaluated properties of the flours showed that the mixture components (nixtamal maize, sweet potatoes and egg flour) were compatible blends for the production of masa. Obtained result showed that nixtamalization as a process had a significant effect on the quality of fortified masa flour. The proximate and functional properties showed that the linear mixture terms were significant at p< 0.05. The optimum condition for the production of best fortified masa was found to be 71.8% nixtamal maize flour, 14.5% egg flour and 13.72% sweet potatoes flour with a desirability index of 0.582. It was concluded that nixtamal maize masa flour fortified with sweet potatoes and egg as a recipe was accepted because of its enhanced nutritional quality therefore recommended for masa production.
Abstract: Masa is a Spanish word that connotes all kinds of dough. It is usually brown in colour and round in shape with smooth surfaces. It is also known as waina– a cereal-based yeast fermented recipe consumed in Nigeria and other West African countries. The focus of the research is to formulate and optimize nixtamal maize flour fortified with sweet potato...
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Research Article
Mango Dehydration by Immersion–Impregnation: A Review of Technological Advances, Critical Parameters, and Industrial Applications
Abdoulaye Tamba*
Issue:
Volume 9, Issue 2, December 2025
Pages:
85-95
Received:
1 December 2025
Accepted:
15 December 2025
Published:
29 December 2025
DOI:
10.11648/j.ijfet.20250902.14
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Views:
Abstract: Immersion–impregnation dehydration is an emerging pre-treatment technique used in fruit processing to partially remove water, improve structural stability, and enhance final drying efficiency. Mango (Mangifera indica L.), a climacteric tropical fruit valued for its sensory and nutritional qualities, remains challenging to process due to its high moisture content, thermal sensitivity, and pronounced seasonality. Immersion–impregnation relies on osmotic mass transfer, during which water diffuses outward while solutes migrate into plant tissues under controlled thermodynamic gradients. Recent studies have shown that this approach can increase water loss, shorten drying time, reinforce tissue microstructure, and preserve bioactive compounds prior to conventional or advanced drying operations. This review summarizes current scientific and technological advances related to immersion–impregnation dehydration applied to mango. It examines key process parameters—such as solute concentration, immersion time, temperature, osmotic solution composition, hydrodynamic effects, and fruit microstructure—and evaluates their influence on mass transfer behaviour, activation energy, solute gain, and final product quality. Comparative findings between continuous and intermittent immersion methods are presented, together with recent technological developments that support industrial scalability. The review also identifies major scientific and operational challenges, including process modelling, energy–quality optimization, and standardization for use in emerging economies. Finally, future perspectives highlight the potential of hybrid dehydration strategies, sustainable osmotic solutions, and automation-based process control to support large-scale industrial implementation.
Abstract: Immersion–impregnation dehydration is an emerging pre-treatment technique used in fruit processing to partially remove water, improve structural stability, and enhance final drying efficiency. Mango (Mangifera indica L.), a climacteric tropical fruit valued for its sensory and nutritional qualities, remains challenging to process due to its high mo...
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