Study of the Physicochemical, Nutritional and Microbiological Quality of Toedo Candies Produced in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

Abstract

In Burkina Faso, the pulp of the baobab tree (Adansonia digitata) is mainly used to produce fruit juices or candies called toedo candies. Teodo candies are produced and sold in the markets and popular with the people. However, there is little data on the physicochemical, nutritional and microbiological characteristics of teodo candies produced in Ouagadougou. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate the physicochemical, nutritional and microbiological characteristics of these teodo candies. To carry out the study, 9 samples of toedo candy were taken from different producers in the city of Ouagadougou. The physicochemical and microbiological characteristics were determined by standard methods. Mineral contents were determined by flame spectrometry. The results obtained show that the toedo candies have an average ash content of 1.3±0.21 to 1.9±0.06%, a titratable acidity of 0.131±0.001 to 0.168±0.002%, a pH varying from 3.87±0.10 to 3.91±0.10, a water content from 3.84±0.00 to 16.06±0.14% and a dry matter (DM) content of 84.04±0.14 to 96.16±0.00%. In addition, this study revelead that these samples are rich in micronutrients such as : iron (49.30 to 127.50 mg/100 g DM), magnesium (3.53 to 42.38 mg/100 g DM), zinc (1.37 to 14.92 mg/100 g DM) and calcium (17.60 to 43.30 mg/100 g DM). Microbiological analyzes indicate the presence of total mesophilic aerobic flora (TMAF), yeasts and molds (YM) and coliforms in the samples analyzed with loads of 2.2x103 to 4.9x104 CFU/g, ˂10 to 2.0x102 CFU/g and ˂10 to 5.0x102 CFU/g respectively. For all the germs studied, 11.11% of the samples were of unsatisfactory quality, 44.44% of acceptable quality and 44.44% of satisfactory quality.