Chemical composition butternut squash and microbial quality of butternut squash flour

Abstract

Butternut Squash (Curcurbita moschata) also known as butternut pumpkin is a fruit that is can be eaten in many forms. It can be roasted, toasted, pureed for soups or mashed and is used in casseroles, breads and muffins (Pinho et al., 2011). Butter nut squash (BNS) is packed with vitamins, nutrients and is a rich source of antioxidants. In Ghana, BNS is not very popular but, it is grown locally for export to UK and Europe (ghananewsagency.org, 2011). In Kenya, BNS is an emerging economic crop with ready market and has a potential to promote food security, enhance incomes of small-holder farmers and alleviate poverty (Isaboke et al., 2012). Not much research has been done on BNS in Ghana. In 2013, Dari utilized it in the formulation of yoghurt to provide alternative source of nutrition for consumers and to reduce post harvest losses to farmers. He also proposed the extraction of the colour compounds from the fruit for use as a commercial food colour. Dari & Yaro (2017) conducted proximate analysis on BNS grown in Kukobila, Savelugu in the Northern Region of Ghana. Their results indicated the presence of crude protein, crude fat, crude fibre, ash, carbohydrate, moisture and Vitamin C in quantities that could be used to support nutritional status of consumers. This study therefore sought to develop flour from BNS for possible use in the formulation of dry cereal mix, as composite flour as well as a fruit snack for consumers. Chemical analyses were conducted on the raw BNS and microbial and shelf life studies were conducted on the developed BNS flour over a period of eight weeks under room temperature (25°C) storage. Generally, there was a decline in bacterial population over the 8 week period. The BNS can therefore be processed for use as a snack or be milled into flour suitable for formulating cereal mixes, pastries, noodles, as composite flour or used in the formulation of juices