Caracterização da qualidade da farinha de mandioca produzida no agreste alagoano

Abstract

The culture of the cassava assumes high social importance, because it has been one of the main energetic kind of food for over 500 million people in the world. It is diffused in all Brazilian territory, mainly in the northeast area. In Alagoas, more particularly in the rural area, it represents an important source of income for a lot of families. Among all products, the cassava flour stands out like being the most important product. The flour processing is very traditional and it mostly uses family labor in all the stages of the processing, where a big part of the production happens without technical orientations favouring the hygiene lack. The units of processing are known as "flour houses , where they are usually houses or hangars with precarious installations, plus the hygiene lack that exposes the product to several dangers. In Alagoas, due to the producers disorganization, price oscillation and quality of the final product, many flour houses are closed. So, in the regional market it is common to have a competition of flours produced by other states, mainly Pernambuco and Sergipe. To check competitiveness to the local flour it is indispensable to improve the quality of the product. To obtain a cassava flour with good quality, it is essential to have special cares along all the industrial process. With the intention of contributing for the evaluation and optimization of the technological processes used, the objective of this work was to characterize the quality of the cassava flour produced in flour houses located in the rural areas in Alagoas. Visits to the flour houses were made, for questionnaire application and sample collection, in 51 flour houses located in the ambit of the Local Productive Arrangement (APL). The samples were analyzed as to microbiological and physical-chemical parameters defined in specific legislations. The results of this research reinforce the need of the development of a program to qualify the producers, guiding them for the implantation of Good Manufacturing Practices in their industrial units.