By: Roland Joseph Tetteh
Cassava is classified as either sweet or bitter and it contains antinutritional factors and toxins. Both bitter and sweet varieties of cassava carry the image of life and death. However, with the bitter and sweet varieties, there is life.
The importance of cassava to many Africans is epitomised in the Ewe (a language spoken in Ghana, Togo, Benin and Nigeria) named cassava plant, AGBELI, which literally means "THERE IS LIFE ".
In Ghana, the Farmers often prefer bitter varieties because they deter pests, animals, and thieves. However, the sweet cassava is consuming more than the bitter one.
Worldwide, over half a billion people depend on cassava as their source of food. Africa continent depends much on root and tuber crops in feeding its population.
In Ghana, for example, cassava and yams occupy an important position in the agricultural economy and contribute about 46 per cent of the agricultural gross domestic product. Cassava accounts for a daily caloric intake of 30 per cent in Ghana and is grown by nearly every farming family. It is one of the most drought-tolerant crops, capable of growing on marginal soils. Every part of Ghana soil cassava can grow to the wild.
The concentration of these antinutritional and unsafe glycosides varies considerably between varieties and also with climatic and cultural conditions. Selection of cassava species to be grown, therefore, is quite important. Once harvested, bitter cassava must be treated and prepared properly prior to human or animal consumption, while sweet cassava can be used after simply boiling. Cooking is sufficient to eliminate all toxicity.
Our ancient fathers revealed the secret of the nutritional value of the cassava root, which is the chief source important minerals for our health. The cassava root is long and tapered, with a firm, homogeneous flesh encased in a detachable rind, about 1 mm thick, rough and brown on the outside.
The flesh can be chalk-white or yellowish. Cassava roots are very rich in starch and contain an amount of calcium, phosphorus, zinc, magnesium, copper, iron, manganese and vitamin C. However, cassava leaves are a good source of protein (rich in lysine), but deficient in the amino acid methionine and possibly tryptophan.
Raw cassava is 60% water, 38% carbohydrates, 1% protein, and has negligible fat of 0.3g. In a 100 gram amount, raw cassava provides 160 calories and contains 25% of the Daily Value (DV) for vitamin C, but otherwise has no micronutrients in significant content (no values above 10% DV; table). Cooked cassava starch has a digestibility of over 75%.
The traditional method used in West Africa is to peel the roots and put them into the water for three days to ferment. The roots are then dried or cooked. In Nigeria and several other West African countries, including Ghana, Cameroon, Benin, Togo, Ivory Coast, and Burkina Faso, they are usually grated and lightly fried in palm oil to preserve them. The result is a foodstuff called gari.
Considering the health factors of the plant, the cassava is surely a bringer of life. Cassava help to increase immune function effectively as well as repair and protect the DNA. The leaves are useful for wound healing in the skin and replacing damaged cells and bone. Cassava leaves reducing the frequency of migraines and also reducing acidic levels in the body and breaks down waste faster.
