CSIR-Food Research Institute: annual report 2010

Abstract

Food Research Institute (FRI) is one of the thirteen (13) Institutes of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) which continues to be a centre of excellence in food research and development. It generates technologies that are aimed at meeting the demands of the private sector and socio-economic development. CSIR-FRI's vision is to be the leading research institute in the country. It provides technical, analytical services, research and consultancy services to governmental, industry and international development agencies. The Institute still maintained its accreditation status to ISO 17025 test methods under the South African National Accreditation System (SANAS). Its mission is primarily to conduct market-oriented applied research and provide technical services and products profitably to the private sector and other stakeholders. The overall and primary goal of the Institute is to assist in poverty alleviation through the creation of opportunities for generating and increasing incomes within the micro, small, medium and large-scale food industries; contribute to food security, foreign exchange earnings and the application of cost effective food processing technologies that are environmentally friendly. In the area of food product development, CSIR-FRI continued with its development of cassava, plantain, cocoyam, yam, kokonte, cowpea, soybean, fermented flouts, among others. The Institute also continued with its design and fabrication of food processing equipment such as, solar dryers, energy efficient solari gas dryers, cassava processing machines, hammer mills etc. It organized training programmes on mushroom cultivation and spawn production, microbiological safety and quality control of foods and also trained potential entrepreneuts in technologies it developed. The Institute provided a wide range of consultation and out-sourcing services, such as the establishment of Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) system for food industries. Under accreditation activities, the Institute continued to offer comprehensive chemical and microbiological analytical services to the local beverage, food, feed and brewing industries. Under chemical analyses, commodities tested included: fish and fish products, chocolate and cocoa products, water, fruit juices and soft drinks, biscuits, toffees, dairy products, poultry products, spices, flavorings, condiments and vegetables. The microbiological analyses included: quality control of raw materials, intermediate and finished products, determination of indicator organisms, pathogenic micro-organisms such as Salmonella and Vibrio and specific spoilage organisms, identification of bacteria, yeasts and moulds, testing for sterility and evaluation of efficacy of disinfectants in food hygiene. As an output of scientific research, seventeen (17) scientific articles were published in eleven (11)refereed journals. The Institute in collaboration with the German International Cooperation (GIZ) and the Market Oriented Agricultute Project (MOAP) created an Incubation Center for SMEs under its technology incubation programme. In line with the above, an efficient energy saving grain dryer was fabricated to enhance the private-public partnership concept. As an initiative to aid the growth of mushroom cultivation, income generation and improvement of waste management, CSIR- FRI researched into the utilization of dried pineapple rind in the cultivation of mushroom and the comparative and morphological studies on 13 strains of oyster mushroom PLeurotus species. This is to increase the biological efficiency of the mushroom which presently stands at 75% to 100% and will be of enormous benefit to the mushroom farmers that have been trained over the years. The Institute continued to participate in the Root and Tuber Improvement and Marketing Programme (RTIMP) by setting up two Good Practice Centres (GPCs) as demonstration centres for root and tuber processors to adopt and improve on their processing activities. In line with the above activity, the Institute upgraded the Progressive Women's Processing Enterprise at Wusuta in the Volta Region and constructed an Ex Novo GPC at Agona Mankrong in the Central Region. Under the Millennium Development Authority (MiDA) project, CSIR-FRI trained over 2,600 farmers in 53 Farmer Based Organizations (FBOs) in the West Mamprusi and Savelugu-Nanton Districts of the MiDA Northern Intervention' Zone. The project brought about an increase in agriculture production in the region and gave a new twist to farming where farmers now see the venture as a commercial entity and not just a way of life. The Cassava: Adding Value in Africa (CAVA) project has enabled farmers generate extra income through mopping up of surplus cassava for new markets. This helped to improve foreign income savings through the availability of alternative raw material source for plywood and bakery industries. The CAVA project also generated four technical manuals on cassava processing to aid processors in their activities. It also strengthened the cassava value chain in Ghana where processors have been taught to incorporate at least 10% of High Quality Cassava Flour (HQCF) into bakery products. The CORAF-WECARD project in this regard also trained a number of farmers and processors in improved cassava and rice processing to aid poverty alleviation. Under the Moringa project, the booklet "Growing and processing Moringa leaves" was produced to educate Moringa users on the crop's efficacy. Major collaborators of the different projects carried out at the Institute included the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) , World Food Programme (WFP), Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) ,Natural Resources Institute (NRI) of the UK, United States Agency for International Development (USAID), German International Cooperation (GIZ) and some CSIR Institutes. As part of the Institute's income generation effort, the Institute generated a net total income of GHS 396,408.84 which represented 6% increase over that of 2009. The Institute received a number of visitors including the Minister of Environment Science and Technology, Honourable Sherry Ayittey, the Director-General of CSIR, Dr.' Abdulai B. Salifu and the Chairman of the CSIR Council, Prof E. H. Amonoo-Neizer, to acquaint themselves with activities of the Institute and improve science and technology output. A delegation from Korea also paid a visit to the Institute in order to interact with scientists