7th Call - Dr. Niilante Amissah

Project Title: Developing Processing Parameters for Canning Grasscutter Meat.

Principal Investigator: Dr. Niilante Amissah (Department of Family and Consumer Sciences, CACS, University of Ghana)

Email Address: niiamissah@ug.edu.gh / niilante@gmail.com

Award Amount: GHC 24,999.00

Project Status: On-going

Summary:

Grasscutter (Thryonomys swinderianus) meat is low in fat and is a good source of calcium and phosphorus. Grasscutter is popular in Ghana, however there are few marketing channels for the meat as processing post- slaughter has been limited to artisanal smoking methods. Grasscutter meat can be purchased fresh (whole, undressed) or smoked, along major highways in Ghana or as a component of meals prepared in chopbars. Smoked grasscutter meat is sold in markets. Grasscutter meat is not available in Supermarket chains (Koala, Max Mart, ShopRite) which sell other meat products (poultry, beef, goat, mutton) fresh and processed. In recent years, microlivestock farmers have been encouraged to rear grasscutter by organizations such as Heifer International and GIZ, to reduce the dependence on hunting and trapping grasscutter in the wild. With the increased grasscutter production expected from these farming activities, there is a need to develop value-added products for grasscutter that creates new uses for the meat and takes advantage of existing marketing channels (local and export) that are not being utilized at this time. The study proposes to develop processing parameters for canning grasscutter meat to provide the required technological information for value added shelf-stable canned grasscutter products.