Relationship between Selected Properties of Starchy Vegetables on Grating and Slicing Production Rate

Prediction on the output of grating and slicing of starchy vegetables are important prior to design or develop the particular food plant. The production rate of grating and slicing products could be affected by the properties of starchy vegetables. In this study, two selected properties which hardness and moisture content are studied. Hardness of selected starchy vegetables was measured using a destructive testing method of texture analyzer. A testing machine of the texture analyzer applied a specific blade to shear the vegetables and automatically generate data. The objective of this study was to determine the relationship between starchy vegetables hardness and moisture content which influenced the production rate in grating and slicing products. The selected starchy vegetables used for this study were white potato, sweet potato, tapioca and yam. The maximum hardness was computed and analyzed using the texture analyzer. It was found that the maximum hardness of white potato, yam, sweet potato and tapioca were 6.67, 12.01, 16.98 and 20.08 kg respectively. It was determined that white potato had the highest moisture content among the vegetables, which was 78.14%. In conclusion, the lower value of hardness and higher value of moisture content are significantly correlated to higher production rate of grating and slicing products. Results presented may help the food industry to initially predict the production rate of agricultural products such as food chips and finger products.