Knowledge-Based Assessment and training of Agricultural Development Programme (ADP) - Staff on Roselle as a functional and economic valuable crop for food security and income generation

Abstract

The study was conducted to assess the knowledge of the Agricultural Development Programme (ADP)-staff on the nutraceutical and nutritional potentials of Roselle calyx as well as to train them on how to process the calyces for food sustainability and income generation. Pre-test and post-test evaluations were administered before and after the training respectively. The hand-on-training includes processing of different Roselle –products such as Roselle wine, Roselle tea, Roselle –Apple drink (RAD), Roselle-Sugar-drink(RSD) and Roselle Jam. Sensory evaluation was conducted on these Roselle food products using 9 –point hedonic scale(1=dislike extremely and 9=like extremely). Demographic survey showed that all the participants were females and about 75% were first degree holders while 25% were second degree holders. The results of pre-test showed that about 80% of the participants had been involved in previous training on other foods processing. Although, < 50 % of the participants had little or no knowledge about Roselle processing. Sensory evaluation showed that RSD was the most preferred sample by the panelists with a rating score of 8.4 point. On the same vein, the panelists’ responses implied that RSD was significantly rated higher than RAD in terms of flavor, taste and texture. Other Roselle products like Roselle jam, wine and tea were sensorially
rated high indicating general acceptability. In conclusion, the result of post- training evaluation showed that more than ninety percent of the participants were eager to put the acquired skills into practice and had expressed their readiness to generate income.