Consumer Preferences for Boiled and Fried Sweet Potato in Central and Northern Côte d'Ivoire, West Africa

Aims: This study evaluated the sensory properties and consumer acceptability of orange-fleshed sweet potato and local sweet potato among households of Central and Northern Côte d’Ivoire.

Study Design: Selection of sweet potato cultivars, determination of nutritional properties, cooking process, and evaluation of hedonic testing and consumer acceptability.

Place and Duration of Study: Bouake and Korhogo district in Central and Northern Côte d’Ivoire, for three years 2018, 2019, and 2020 (July to November).

Methodology: Sensory evaluation and acceptability were performed using a nine-point hedonic scale. The relationships between the sensory attributes and the sweet potato cultivars were analyzed using a Principal Component Analysis plot. Biochemical standard methods were used to determine the dry matter, sugar, total carotenoid contents, and mineral composition of sweet potato cultivars tested by the sensory panel.

Results: All twelve sweet potato cultivars were accepted based on sensory attributes with the different traits of preference. In Bouake district, white (Sanfo Figui 1 and Sanfo Figui 2) and yellow cultivars (Fatoni 2) were most preferred for their texture and yam-like taste, while in Korhogo locality, OFSP (Covington TIB-440060, CIP-199062-1 and Irene) and yellow cultivar (Gotchan) were most accepted because of their attractive appearance and their sweet taste. The OFSP cultivars recorded low dry matter and high sugar content compared to white and yellow varieties. Also, OFSP showed the highest content of carotenoid (181.70 to 351.47 µg/g dw), while local variety recorded low content. All the sweet potato cultivars tested contain mineral components.

Conclusion: This study shows that the local and OFSP varieties were successfully accepted by the consumer with the different quality traits. The main quality traits that determine consumer preference are appearance, texture, and taste (none or sweet taste). Understanding consumer quality traits can increase the effectiveness of breeding programmes, increase yield and adoption of new varieties.