Effects of Solid-State Fermentation and the Potential Use of Cassava By-products as Fermented Food

Abstract

By-products such as cassava bagasse and leaves are discarded though they contain high amounts of carbohydrates, proteins, fat and minerals. The application of solid-state fermentation (SSF) to substrates containing these by-products could improve the bioavailability of nutrients while reducing the amounts of anti-nutritive factors such as cyanide. To evaluate the possibility of using by-products from cassava some techniques, such as colorimetric methods, gas chromatography and high performance of liquid chromatography were applied to evaluate the total cyanide, carbohydrate contents, to characterize the fatty acid profiles, and estimate the essential amino acids after the fermentation process. After the SSF process, the cyanide content was significantly decreased. The profile of essential amino acids showed high concentrations of histidine, isoleucine, valine, methionine and phenylalanine. Some important unsaturated fatty acids were found, such as linoleic acid (18:29,12); α-linolenic acid (18:39,12,15); 11-eicosenoic acid (20:1) and 13,16-docosadienoic acid (22:2). The evaluation of the protein quality showed a significant increase in its bioavailability. The results support the conclusion that currently not used agricultural by-products could become sources of food that provide important quantities of essential nutrients.