Quality characteristics of commercially available dried tilapia in two northern cities of Nueva Ecija, Philippines

Countries rich in aquatic resources, like the Philippines, depend on fish as a primary source of protein and other essential nutrients. Dried tilapia is one of the fish-processed products available all year round in local markets. However, the product's quality may vary, affecting its nutrient content and storage life. This study evaluated the proximate composition, sensory characteristics and shelf-life of dried tilapia sold in two cities of Nueva Ecija: Science City of Muñoz and San Jose City, as well as the tildaing sold by Central Luzon State University (CLSU). A significantly higher (p>0.05) protein content was attained by tilading compared to the other two treatments. However, no significant differences were observed in dry matter, moisture, crude fat and carbohydrate. As for crude fiber, ash and sodium chloride, significantly higher values were seen in dried tilapia from Muñoz and San Jose City. In terms of sensory evaluation, significantly the highest scores were attained by tilading indicating the best acceptance rate among the treatments. Moreover, it did not show any signs of spoilage after 3 months of storage at room temperature while the formation of molds and insect infestation was observed on the other two treatments after 5 weeks. Overall, tilading was observed to have the best quality based on the parameters evaluated in this study.