Biochemical Analysis Of Cassava Quality Traits In Central Rift Valley Of Kenya

Abstract

Cassava (Manihot esculenta Cranzt) is an important food security crop for poor rural communities particularly in Africa. Little is however known about variability of critical root nutritional and quality traits of African cassava germplasm. Cassava can be low in important micronutrients like iron and zinc and its quality can be influenced by the levels of cyanogenic glucosides. This led to a study whose objective was to determine the nutritional quality traits of different genotypes of cassava cultivated in the central Rift Valley region of Kenya at Nakuru, Baringo and Kericho districts. Roots from fourteen accessions comprising Kenyan local landraces and improved clones were screened for their nutritional traits including the contents of cyanogenic glycosides, protein and the micro nutrients iron and zinc. There were differences  for all the nutritional traits for different genotypes in all sites. Contents of cyanogenic glycosides in both roots and leaves, total root proteins, root iron and zinc ranged from 31.8 ppm to 90.8 ppm; 20.8 ppm to 154.4 ppm; 1.15 % to 3.47 %; 17.81 ppm to 59.69 ppm and 39.39 ppm to 118 ppm, respectively. The observed values for protein and mineral contents in Mucericeri and KME-1 suggest the potential for improving the nutritive value of local cassava germplasm whereas only the low root cyanogenic landraces Mucericeri and KME-1 should be introduced in to the central Rift Valley.