PHYSICO-CHEMICAL PARAMETERS DETERMINING THE QUALITY OF FLOUR MARKETED IN SANTARÉM – PA

The state of Pará, especially Santarém, is a large producer of cassava root, most of this production is destined for the manufacture of flour. The present work aims to evaluate the physicochemical quality parameters of the flour sold in Santarém. 149 samples were collected in 5 municipal fairs and later the granulometry, pH, alcoholic acidity, moisture content and ash in these samples were evaluated in comparison with Brazilian legislation. It was observed that no sample was classified as fine flour, and only 3 samples had moisture above the permitted level. However, in relation to ash and alcoholic acidity contents, 37.6% and 100% of the samples presented values above the allowed. In addition, the samples showed great variations in the parameters evaluated, which indicates a lack of standardization in the production stages and in the storage of the product.