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In contribution towards the screening of eight hydroponically grown carrots, some biochemical, physical and sensory properties of the roots were evaluated. The carrots had been grown under two nutrient delivery systems, Nutrient Film Technique (NFT) and Microporous Tube Membrane nutrient delivery System (MTMS). Biochemical measures conducted included, moisture, fat and β-carotene contents, and the physical measures were texture and color. For the NFT- and MTMS-grown carrots, Nantes Touchan (91%) and Nanco Hybrid (87%), respectively, had the highest moisture contents. Fat contents for all the cultivars grown in both systems ranged from 0.1 to 0.4%. In the NFT-grown carrots, Baby Spike and Juwaroot had the highest and lowest β-carotene contents, 8777 and 248 µg/100 g, respectively. For the MTMS-grown carrots, Thumbelina had the highest β-carotene content (7840 µg/100 g). However, the lowest β-carotene value for the MTMS-grown carrots was 3059 µg/100 g.

The sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas [L.] Lam) is a candidate crop for future space missions. However, sweetpotatoes are highly perishable and difficult to store, therefore, novel avenues for processing the surplus roots into value-added products that are commercially viable are needed. Technology was developed on a laboratory scale for the production of sweetpotato syrup and: i) the effect of varying levels of α-amylase on syrup quality determined; and ii) the storage stability and consumer acceptance of the syrup evaluated. Three levels of thermostable bacterial α-amylases (1.5, 3.0, 4.5 mL) were used for conversion of sweetpotato starch (SPS) into glucose syrup. The 1.5 mL α-amylase-treated was dropped from the experiment because there was no hydrolysis. The enzymatic conversion of SPS into glucose was significantly higher (P<0.05) for the 4.5 mL α-amylase-treated compared to the 1.5 and 3.0 mL levels.

This study compared the physicochemical properties and consumer acceptance of seven nutrient film technique (NFT) and eight microporous tube membrane nutrient delivery system (MTMS) grown hydroponic carrots. NFT-grown carrots had moisture contents range from 86.3–92.1% while the MTMS-grown carrots a range of 82.0–92.0%. β-carotene contents for the NFT-carrots ranged between 2,030–9,900 μg/100 g and for the MTMS-carrots between 2,977–10,488 μg/100 g. Royal Chantenay-NFT- and Mignon-MTMS-grown were the lightest in color, whereas, Mignon-NFT, and Little Finger-MTMS were the darkest. Paramex MTMS-grown was the most acceptable cultivar to the consumers. Paramex, Kinko and Mignon have good potential to be considered for further screening.

Protein profiles and morphological characteristics of two newly developed sweetpotato varieties (TU-82-155 and J6/66) were compared to a commercial variety (Beauregard) using SDS-PAGE, and SEM, respectively. Under reducing and denatured conditions, electrophoresis displayed the major protein, sporamins, at 25 kDa, for all the three cultivars. No major variability in protein profile or morphological structures, among the sweetpotatoes, was observed. Presence of sporamin was established and total protein was higher in TU-82-155 on a dry weight basis. Starch granules were slightly larger and more sparsely distributed in J6/66.