CONTENTS | ANB-BIA HOMEPAGE | WEEKLY NEWS
by Taye Babaleye, Nigeria, January 1999
THEME = ECONOMY
Tofu - soybean curd extensively eaten in the Orient, is on its way
to becoming
an indigenous food in Nigeria, Africa's most populous country.
The soy cheese is replacing a traditional dairy product, Wara,
made from cows' milk, which has become increasingly costly,
taking it out of many consumers' reach
Tofu is a curd that is made directly by coagulating soymilk. It resembles a soft white cheese or a very firm yogurt. Basically, tofu is water-extracted and contains salt - or acid-coagulated soy protein gel with water, soy lipids, and other constituent's trapped in it. Tofu is inexpensive, nutritious, and versatile in use. Because of its bland taste and porous texture, it can be used with virtually any food. Pressed Tofu has 10% protein and 3.5% fat.
The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) began work on Tofu to find a cheaper substitute or alternative to Wara which would be acceptable to consumers, easy to prepare, and which would improve the nutritional and economic well-being of people within the area covered by its terms of reference. Tofu seemed to fit the bill.
Prior to IITA's Soybean Utilization Research Project getting underway with its research on Tofu, there was little information on Tofu-making and its use in Nigeria. Wara, which is similar, is produced by housewives in the northern states and in some southwestern states. Wara is a simple, soft, white, unripened cheese made by coagulating unpasteurized cows' milk with the juice from sodom apple leaves. The food is popular in the diets of the poor and low-income groups. With the rise in cost of fresh cows' milk - a major source of protein - IITA realized that something had to be done.
IITA turned to the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) for assistance and funding. Dr. O. Nakayama, a food technologist and Tofu expert, was sent to IITA by JICA to work on Tofu. He began by developing a method to make Tofu, using local food processing techniques, specifically finding an inexpensive coagulant.
In Asia, Tofu is traditionally made with calcium sulphate or bittern (magnesium chloride). These chemicals are expensive and not readily available in Nigeria, especially in rural areas.
Nakayama developed a procedure for making Tofu, using the same local coagulant (juice extract from bombom leaves) that housewives were using for making Wara. He also found that other coagulants can be used, such as lime/lemon juice. Having been introduced to the Tofu-making process, Nigerian Tofu-makers discovered through their ingenuity, that the fermenting liquor from cereal (maize, millet, and sorghum), formed when preparing a fermented gruel, could be used as a coagulant. Another coagulant, tamarind extract, was also being used.
These coagulants have become very popular, and are regularly used in Nigeria for making Tofu. Nakayama later helped to improve on the yield of Tofu, based on these new coagulants and developed an alternative procedure - a hot milk extraction method.
Before the development and promotion of Tofu, there was no market for the product in Nigeria. Now there is an emerging market developing side by side with Wara. Today, Tofu consumption has increased in many parts of Nigeria. Tofu-making has become an income generator for many housewives. It is fried and hawked on the streets and consumed as a snack or as a meat substitute in stews and soups.
IITA provides training in producing Tofu in many villages. It is envisaged that Tofu-making will develop into a cottage industry in Nigeria. With the scarcity and high cost of dairy products, it is most likely that Tofu consumption will diversify and replace the traditional Wara. Tofu's future in Nigeria looks bright.
END
CONTENTS | ANB-BIA HOMEPAGE | WEEKLY NEWS
PeaceLink 1999 - Reproduction authorised, with usual acknowledgement