The Nutritional and Microbiological Quality of Traditionally Dry Okra in the Central African Republic

Okra is one of the most consumed vegetables in the Central African Republic, given the difficulties of storing it fresh can lead to post-harvest losses and contamination. The objective of this study is to evaluate the physicochemical, nutritional and microbiological quality of dried okra. The analysis focused on samples of dried okra taken from the Bangui markets. The humidity level was carried out by the thermogravimetric method which consists of determining the quantity of water contained in the sample by prolonged heating. The protein assay is based on the principle of precipitation and involves using a neutral salt buffer solution to dissolve the proteins. The protein content is obtained by the ratio of the mass of the pellet to the initial mass of the powder, multiplied by 100. The determination of the lipids consists of the release of the total lipids by extraction using an organic solvent immiscible with water (hexane or methanol), the lipid extract is weighed after drying at 105˚C for one hour. The enumeration of microorganisms was done only on solid medium with the mass inoculation method then the incubation and counting of colonies were done according to the standards in force for each type of microorganism. The results obtained for the average humidity levels are 7.5% higher than the normal value, 11.82% for the average proteins, 1.49 for the lipid level and the microbiological analysis reveals the presence of characteristic colonies of Escherichia coli and fungi. The results obtained demonstrate the limit of sun drying by growers.