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Foreword
This paper was first issued in 1956 and then reprinted in 1966 under the title
Processing of cassava and cassava products in rural industries. In 1971 it was
expanded for publication as FAO Agricultural Services Bulletin No. 8, entitled
Processing of cassava.
Because of the great demand for information from governments and from
private concerns and persons, the text has been updated to cover subsequent
advances in cassava production and processing.

Introduction
Cassava was unknown to the Old World before the discovery of America. There
is archaeological evidence of two major centres of origin for this crop, one in Mexico
and Central America and the other in north-eastern Brazil. The first Portuguese
settlers found the native Indians in Brazil growing the cassava plant and Pierre
Martyr wrote in 1494 that the "poisonous roots" of a yucca were used in the
preparation of bread. It is believed that cassava was introduced to the western coast
of Africa in about the sixteenth century by slave merchants. The Portuguese brought
it later to their stations around the mouth of the Congo River, and it then spread to
other areas. In 1854 Livingstone described the preparation of cassava flour in Angola,
and subsequently Stanley described its use in the Congo. Cassava cultivation
increased after 1850 in the east African territories as a result of the efforts of
Europeans and Arabs who were pushing into the interior and who recognized its
value as a safeguard against the frequent periods of famine.
In the Far East cassava was not known as a food plant until 1835. In about
1850 it was transported directly from Brazil to Java, Singapore and Malaya. When
the more profitable rubber plantations were started on the Malay Peninsula, cassava
growing moved to other parts of Indonesia where it flourished. During the period
1919-41 about 98 percent of all cassava flour was produced in Java, but during the
Second World War Brazil increased and improved its production.
Now grown throughout the tropical world, cassava is second only to the sweet
potato as the most important starchy root crop of the tropics.
The cassava plant has been classified botanically as Manihot utilissima Pohl
of the family Euphorbiaceae. In recent publications, however, the name Manihot
esculenta Crantz is being increasingly adopted.
The plant is popularly known under a great variety of names: ubi kettella or
kaspe (Indonesia), manioca, rumu or yucca (Latin America), mandioca or aipim
(Brazil), manioc (Madagascar and French-speaking Africa), tapioca (India, Malaysia),
cassava and sometimes cassada (English-speaking regions in Africa, Thailand, and
Sri Lanka).
The term cassava (manioc in French-speaking countries) is usually applied in
Europe and the United States of America to the roots of the cassava plant, whereas
tapioca denotes baked products of cassava flour. The word tapioca derives from
tipioca, the Tupi Indian name for the meal which settles out of the liquid expressed
from rasped tubers and is made up into pellets called tipiocet.
Because it grows easily, has large yields and is little affected by diseases and
pests the areas under cassava cultivation are increasing rapidly. The plant is grown
for its edible tubers, which serve as a staple food in many tropical countries and are
also the source of an important starch. Its value as a famine relief crop has long been
recognized. In parts of the Far East during the Second World War many people

survived on cassava roots, and in Africa it was a principal food source for workers in
mining and industrial centres.
It is now grown widely as a food crop or for industrial purposes. In many
regions of the tropics cassava occupies much the same position as white potatoes do
in some parts of the temperate zones as the principal carbohydrate of the daily diet.
The industrial utilization of cassava roots is expanding every year.
In the early decades of this century, cassava was held responsible for the rapid
exhaustion of forest clearings, but later experiments in many parts of the tropics
showed that it is not a soil-depleting crop. Since the Second World War, a more
balanced appraisal of the crop has developed. More scientists, agriculturists and
sociologists have become aware of its importance in developing countries, where it is
most commonly produced. In many countries emphasis is being placed on research
for the improvement of production and utilization of cassava crops.

1. Cassava cultivation
The plant
The cassava plant is a perennial that grows under cultivation to a height of
about 2 4 m. The large, palmate leaves ordinarily have five to seven lobes borne on a
long slender petiole. They grow only toward the end of the branches. As the plant
grows, the main stem forks, usually into three branches which then divide similarly.
The roots or tubers radiate from the stem just below the surface of the ground. Feeder
roots growing vertically from the stem and from the storage roots penetrate the soil
to a depth of 50-100 cm. This capacity of the cassava plant to obtain nourishment
from some distance below the surface may help to explain its growth on inferior soils.
Male and female flowers arranged in loose plumes are produced on the same
plant. The triangular-shaped fruit contains three seeds which are viable and can be
used for the propagation of the plant. The number of tuberous roots and their
dimensions vary greatly among the different varieties. The roots may reach a size of
30-120 cm long and 4-15 cm in diameter, and a weight of 1-8 kg or more. The plant,
its flowering shoot and its various parts are shown in Figures I and 2.
Clusters of root of the Bogor variety, ripe for harvesting, are shown in Figure
3. A cross section of the root is given in Figure 4. The peel consists of an outer and
an inner part, the former comprising a layer of cork cells and the phellogen. The cork
layer, generally dark-coloured, can be removed by brushing in water, as is done in
the washers of large factories. The inner part of the peel contains the phelloderm and
the phloem, which separates the peel from the body of the root. The texture of the
transition layer makes possible an easy loosening of the whole peel from the central
part, thus facilitating the peeling of the roots.
The cork layer varies between 0.5 and 2 percent of the weight of the whole
root, whereas the inner part of the peel accounts for about 8-15 percent. Generally
in ripe roots this is about 2-3 mm thick. The starch content of the peel is only about
half that of the core. The peel is much firmer in structure, hindering a smooth rasping
by primitive raspers; small factories prefer to peel the roots before working them up.
The loss of starch incurred by rejecting the peel however is not acceptable to the
larger factories which remove only the cork layer.
Agricultural practices
PREPARATION OF THE LAND
When cassava is grown as the first crop in forest land no further preparation
is required than the clearing of the forest growth. When cassava is grown after other
crops it often can be planted without further preparation of the soil, once the
preceding crop has been harvested or the soil has been ploughed two or three times
until free from grass and other plants.
Clearing of forest land is done to let in more sunlight to the ground and to
remove weeds and undergrowth which might otherwise compete with economic
plants. The practice in tropical Southeast Asia is to clear the forest soil completely,
including the removal of all roots and other obstructions beneath the soil, by cutting
and burning the forest cover; the land is then deeply ploughed. African practice is to
burn the land cover only. Burning removes only small branches and under-bush but
does not consume all of the trunks and branches. It also destroys soil parasites, and
the layer of ashes increases the amount of potassium salts available to the growing
plants. However, some reports have indicated that complete clearing of the soil in
certain parts of Africa caused deterioration due to the leaching out of nutrients.
PLANTING

Cassava culture varies with the purposes for which it is grown.

Cassava is either planted as a single crop or intercropped with maize, legumes,
vegetables, rubber, oil palm or other plants. Mixed planting reduces the danger of
loss caused by unfavourable weather and pests by spreading the risk over plants
with different susceptibilities.
For agricultural purposes, cassava is propagated exclusively from cuttings. It
is raised from seed only for the purpose of selection Seeds produce plants with fewer
and smaller roots than those of the parents and as many as half of the seeds may
fail to germinate. On the other hand, cuttings taken from the stalks of the plant take
root rapidly and easily, producing plants identical in character with the parent
plants.

FIGURE 2. Manihot utilissima Pohl.

FIGURE 4. Cross section of cassava root. Drawing by R. Soemarsono Slate Botanical

Gardens. Bogor. Indonesia.
Cuttings are obtained from the stems of plants at least ten months old and
2.53.5 cm thick. After harvesting, these stems are stored in a dry place until the next
planting (Fig. 5). Cuttings about 25 cm long should be taken from the lower 75150
cm of the stem after the first 20 em have been discarded. Cuttings from the upper
part of the stem will grow faster, but their final yield is less. The best practice is to
saw a bundle of stalks supported by a girder and then to point the cuttings thus
obtained at the lower end (Fig. 6), taking care not to bruise the buds or otherwise
damage the stem.
Experiments in the Philippines on the relation between the age of cuttings and
yields showed that cuttings taken 75 cm or more below the apex of the stem gave the
best starch yields. Other experiments concluded that older wood from the basal areas
to the midpoint of the stems out yielded apical propagating material.
Key to Figure 4:
Left upper quadrant, after staining with iodine:
1. Peel
a. Outer cork layer
b. Inner layer
2. Cambium
3. Centre
4. Pith and primary xylem
(Both peel and pith contain comparatively little starch.)

Right upper quadrant, showing structural elements of the root:

5.
6.
7.
8.
9.

Cork
Sclerenchymatous fibres
Latex vessels
Cambium
Xylem vessels

Inset A - Enlarged cross section of peel:

10. Cork tissue
11. Sclerenchymatous fibres
12. Starch (small grains)
13. Parenchyma cell
Inset B - Enlarged cross section of centre:
14. Cell wall (larger cells than in peel)
15. Starch (big grains)
Cuttings are planted by hand or by planting machines. Hand planting is done
in one of three ways: vertical, flat below the soil surface or tilted 45" from ground
level. Under low rainfall conditions vertical planting may result in the desiccation of
the cuttings, while in areas of higher rainfall, flat-planted cuttings may rot. In
general, flat planting 5-10 cm below the soil surface is recommended in dry climates
and when mechanical planting is used. Germination seems to be higher; tubers tend
to originate from a great number of points and grow closer to the surface of the soil,
making better use of fertilizers applied on the surface and also making harvesting
easier. On the other hand' vertical planting is used in rainy areas and tilted planting
in semi-rainy areas.
The cuttings are planted on flat soil or on ridges or hills. Some experiments
have shown ridging to produce somewhat lower yields than flat cultivation; but the
work of weeding and harvesting is greatly reduced by ridge planting. As machine
planting would be impossible with furrows or on ridges, flat fields are the most
desirable. Spacing between rows is about 80100 cm, and the plants are spaced along
the rows according to local conditions. The number of plants per hectare varies in
different regions between 10000 and 15000.

FIGURE 6. Scheme of cassava stalk for planting

Time of planting is influenced by weather conditions and the availability of
planting material. Cassava is usually planted at the beginning of the rainy season.
In order to reduce risk and to distribute the hard work of cultivation more evenly,
planting is sometimes divided between the two rainy seasons. It is usually carried

out throughout the year in regions with year-round rainfall. If the stalks are saved
for a long time after harvest, they are not apt to root and grow well. It is therefore
desirable to plant and harvest at the same time.
Experience has shown that, from the standpoint of starch production' the
development of the cassava plant is most profitable when planting takes place at the
beginning of a humid period (i.e., in tropical regions at the beginning of the monsoon).
CULTIVATION
Cassava is frequently cultivated as a temporary shade plant in young
plantations of cocoa, coffee, rubber or oil palm. In Thailand, however, it is grown
mostly as a sole crop and the farmer may for ten years or more grow cassava on the
same land. If the price of cassava roots drops, the farmer may shift to another crop
(e.g., sugarcane, maize or sorghum) until cassava again becomes the more profitable
crop.
Water is essential until the plant is well established. In moist soil, sprouting
takes place within the first week after planting. Generally about 5 percent of the
cuttings will not come to development, so a corresponding surplus has to be provided
for. Within a month of the beginning of planting, the substitution of new cuttings is
still possible.
When cultivated as a temporary shade plant, no special attention is given to
the cassava plant. When grown alone, the plants require little maintenance after
planting. Irrigation may be required if there is no rain, and hoeing of the earth helps
preserve the subsoil humidity, especially in dry sandy soils. The chief problem is
weed control. It may be desirable to weed the crop two or three times until the plants
are well developed and their shade prevents the growth of weeds.
CLIMATE
Cassava is a typical tropical plant. The approximate boundaries for its culture
may be accepted as from 30N to 30S latitudes; however, most cassava growing is
located between 20N and 20S. In general, the crop requires a warm humid climate.
Temperature is important, as all growth stops at about 10C. Typically' the crop is
grown in areas that are frost free the year round. The highest root production can be
expected in the tropical lowlands, below 150 m altitude, where temperatures average
25-27C, but some varieties grow at altitudes of up to 1 500 m.
The plant produces best when rainfall is fairly abundant, but it can be grown
where annual rainfall is as low as 500 mm or where it is as high as 5 000 mm. The
plant can stand prolonged periods of drought in which most other food crops would
perish. This makes it valuable in regions where annual rainfall is low or where
seasonal distribution is irregular. In tropical climates the dry season has about the
same effect on Cassava as low temperature has on deciduous perennials in other
parts of the world. The period of dormancy lasts two to three months and growth
resumes when the rains begin again.
As a tropical crop, cassava is a short-day plant. Experiments conducted in
hothouses show that the optimum light period is about 12 hours and that longer
light periods inhibit starch storage.
SOIL
Cassava grows best on light sandy loams or on loamy sands which are moist,
fertile and deep, but it also does well on soils ranging in texture from the sands to
the clays and on soils of relatively low fertility. In practice, it is grown on a wide range

of soils, provided the soil texture is friable enough to allow the development of the
tubers.
Cassava can produce an economic crop on soils so depleted by repeated
cultivation that they have become unsuitable for other crops. On very rich soils the
plant may produce stems and leaves at the expense of roots. In some parts of Africa
freshly cleared forest soils are regarded as highly suitable after they have borne a
cereal crop.
FERTILIZATION
No fertilization is required when the land is freshly cleared or when there is
enough land to enable the cultivator to substitute new land for old when yields fall.
Like all rapidly growing plants yielding carbohydrates, cassava has high nutrient
requirements and exhausts the soil very rapidly. When cassava is grown on the land
for a number of years in succession or in rotation the soil store of certain nutrients
will be reduced and must therefore be returned to the soil by fertilization.
Various experiments in Brazil, India and many regions of Africa and the Far
East showed significant increases in yield, of roots as well as starch content, obtained
by the application of fertilizers. Potassium salts favour the formation of starch, and
nitrogen and phosphorus are essential for growth. However, if the soil contains large
quantities of assimilated nitrogen, the result will be heavy development of vegetative
growth without a corresponding increase in root production.
Generally speaking, fertilization is practiced at present in most parts of Africa
and South America only on commercial plantations. In Thailand, only a few farmers
apply artificial fertilizers, as they are usually too costly for the small farmer. Most
farmers use different kinds of organic manures, such as cattle or duck manure or
garbage.
The kinds and quantities of fertilizers required by a cassava crop depend on
the nature of the soil.
DISEASES AND PESTS
In many regions, the cassava plant is not normally affected by diseases or
pests. However, in others it may be attacked by the following:
(a.)
(b.)
(c.)
(d.)
(e.)

Virus diseases. Mosaic, the brown streak and leaf curl of tobacco may
attack leaves, stems and branches. Many parts of Africa harbour these
diseases and attempts are being made to select resistant varieties.
Bacterial disease. Bacteria such as Phytomonas manihotis (in Brazil),
Bacterium cassava (in Africa) and Bacterium solanacearum (in Indonesia)
may attack roots, stems or leaves of cassava plants.
Mycoses. There are kinds which attack roots, stems, or leaves of cassava
plants and cause various diseases.
Insects. Some insects affect the plant directly (locusts, beetles and ants);
others affect the plant indirectly by the transfer of virus (aphids).
Animals. Rats, goats and wild pigs are probably the most troublesome;
they feed on the roots, especially in areas adjacent to forests.

TOXICITY
The toxic principle in cassava is hydrocyanic, or prussic, acid, found in the
roots, branches and leaves of the plant in both free and chemically bound forms. The
plant contains a cyanogenetic glucoside called phaseolunatin begins to break down
upon harvest into hydrocyanic acid, acetone and glucose by the action of the enzyme
linase. The presence of hydrocyanic acid is easily recognized by a bitter taste. At the

harvest of cassava roots, the amount of the acid in the plant varies from harmless to
lethal - from a few milligrams to 250 milligrams or more per kilogram of fresh root.
Investigations show that the glucoside content in the cassava plant is markedly
increased by drought and by potassium deficiency.
Hydrolysis of the glucoside by the enzyme can be accelerated by soaking the
roots in water, by crushing or cutting them or by heating. It was found that the
hydrocyanic acid content varied little in different tubers of one plant but varied
considerably in tubers obtained from different locations. The distribution of the acid
in roots varied in different varieties. In sweet varieties, the major part of the acid is
located in the skin and in the exterior cortical layer, while in bitter varieties the acid
is uniformly distributed in all parts of the roots.
In choosing a strain, the hydrocyanic acid content should be taken into
account. Highly poisonous strains are preferred for plantings with the object of
starch manufacture, thereby minimizing thefts by both animals and men.
VARIETIES
Although cassava is an established commercial crop in many tropical
countries and hundreds of varieties are in existence, little is generally known of the
nomenclature and identification of varieties. Various varieties are usually
differentiated from one another by their morphological characteristics such as colour
of stems, petioles, leaves and tubers. Moreover, in many instances the same variety
is known in various places by a number of names.
The numerous varieties of cassava are usually grouped in two main categories:
Manihot palmata and Manihot aipi, or bitter and sweet cassava. This grouping is a
matter of economic convenience, as it is difficult to distinguish the two groups by
botanical characteristics. However, the distinction between them rests upon the
content of hydrocyanic acid, which causes toxicity in the roots. This toxicity is not a
variety constant but varies from place to place; all cassavas are now regarded as
varieties of Manihot utilissima, and in certain circumstances a "bitter" variety may
become "sweet" and vice versa. Hydrocyanic acid content tends to be higher on poor
soils and in dry conditions. According to the recognized classification, sweet or nontoxic roots contain less than 50 milligrams of hydrocyanic acid per kilogram of fresh
matter.
At one time it was thought that the toxicity of a cassava root was associated
with species or variety, but the hydrocyanic acid content was found to vary markedly
with growing conditions, soil, moisture, temperature and age of the plant. Certain
varieties in Africa, for instance, were found to be innocuous in Dahomey and
poisonous when grown in forest soils in Nigeria; the so-called bitter type from
Jamaica failed to produce the toxic substance when grown in Costa Rica.
The chemical composition of cassava roots differs considerably. Studies of 30
varieties in Mexico gave the following results: the dry-matter content of the roots
varied between 24 and 52 percent, with a medium of 35 percent; protein content
varied between 1 and 6 percent, with a medium of 3.5 percent.
Table 1 is based on an analysis made in Madagascar comparing the cassava
root with the potato
For industrial development, many efforts are being made to organize research
and experiments in various geographical regions for the selection of new varieties
with high yields of roots and higher starch content. For purposes of nutritional
improvement strains with a high protein content are being sought.

TABLE 1. - AVERAGE COMPOSITION OF THE CASSAVA ROOT AND THE POTATO

(COMMON VARIETIES AT HARVEST TIME)

Cassava

Potato
Percent

Moisture
Starch
Sugars
Protein
Fats
Fibre
Ash

70.25
121.45
5.13
1.12
0.41
1.11
0.54

75.80
19.90
0.40
2.80
0.20
1.10
0.92

1 Bitter varieties usually average about 30 percent starch content.

HARVESTING
Harvesting of cassava can be done throughout the year when the roots reach
maturity. In regions with seasonal rains, like Madagascar, harvesting is usually done
in the dry season, during the dormant period of the plant; where rain prevails all
year round, as in Malaysia, cassava is harvested throughout the year.
Maturity differs from one variety to another, but for food the tubers can be
harvested at almost any age below 12 months.
From the standpoint of starch production, cassava should be considered ripe
when the yield of starch per hectare is highest. An optimum age of 18-20 months
was found in experiments with certain strains of the variety "So Pedro Preto" in a
tropical climate (Java). The graph in Figure 7 shows the influence of the age at
harvesting on the starch yield as the percentage loss of yield in relation to the yield
at the optimum age as found in an experiment with a definite strain.
It is seen that both root and starch production increase rapidly to their
maximum value, after which root production decreases slowly and starch production
much more rapidly on account of the declining starch content of the tubers.
If the roots are left in the ground, starch content increases with age until, at
a certain point, lignification takes place, causing the roots to become tough and
woody, so that they are harder to prepare for consumption and other uses.
Once the roots are harvested, they begin to deteriorate within about 48 hours,
initially owing to enzymatic changes in the roots and then to rot and decay. The roots
may be kept refrigerated for up to a week. They may be stored in the ground for
longer periods if they are not detached from the plant.
Harvesting is still generally a manual operation, although equipment to
facilitate this operation is being considered. The day before harvest, the plants are
"topped" - the stalks being cut off 40-60 cm above ground by hand, machete or
machine and piled at the side of the field. This length of stalk is left as a handle for
pulling. Material required for the next planting is selected and the rest is burned. In
light soils the roots are slowly drawn from the soil simply by pulling the stems or
with the help of a kind of crowbar and the tubers are cut off the stock. In heavier
soils a hoe may be required to dig up the roots before the plant is pulled out. It must
be noted that once the plants have been topped, lifting of the roots must not be
delayed, as sprouting and a drastic fall in the starch content of the tubers will result.

FIGURE 7. Percentage loss in yield of whole tubers and starch relative to yield at
optimum age. The solid line refers to whole tubers and the dotted line to starch.
YIELD
Cassava is not usually grown on soils where it would be most productive that is, the light sandy loams, fertile and deep, which are reserved for other crops
less tolerant of poor soils. When cassava is grown by traditional tropical methods,
yields lie between 5 and 20 tons per hectare, varying with the region, the variety, the
soil and other factors. However, when the crop is given more attention, yields of 30
40 tons per hectare are obtained. It has been reported that it is normal for some
varieties, under appropriate cultivation methods, to yield over 60 tons per hectare.
The high yields frequently achieved at agricultural experiment stations and
occasionally by some active farmers show what might be accomplished with
improved varieties and better cultural practices.
Nevertheless, cassava yields in total calories per hectare compare very
favourably with those of other starchy staples, as shown in Table 2.
TABLE 2. - AVERAGE YIELDS OF TROPICAL STARCHY STAPLES, 1948-52
Brazil

Java

China (prov.
Of Taiwan)

India

Millions of calories per hectare

Maize
Rice
Yams and
sweet potato
Cassava

4.4
3.9

2.4
3.9

2.3
2.8

5.0
5.5

7.5

5.4

5.6

8.6

14.2

7.1

5.8

11.6

SOURCE: FAO Yearbook of Food and Agricultural Statistics (1955).

Mechanization
In most of the tropical world cassava is grown on small plots; however, in some
countries (e.g., Mexico. Brazil and Nigeria) large plantations have been started and
interest in mechanization is growing. The degree of mechanization depends on the
amount of land, available labour in the area and general policy regarding the use of
manual labour.
The use of machinery for land preparation is preferable to manual labour to
ensure the best possible seed bed for tuber development. Subsequent operations of
planting weeding, topping and harvesting can be done by hand as well as by
machinery.
Labour input for the production of a hectare of cassava varies widely in
different parts of the tropics. It has been estimated that in Zaire 778-830 man-hours
are required per hectare of cassava, including preparation of cuttings, planting,
weeding and harvesting as compared with 1 868-2206 man-hours in Uganda. In
South America and the Caribbean a maximum of 494 man-hours has been estimated
for the same operations. A possible reason for the higher requirements in Africa is
the growing of cassava as an intercrop, with more time consuming operations.
The peculiar nature of the cassava crop presents a number of problems as
regards mechanization, hut it has been successfully mechanized to a degree in some
countries.
The following is an outline of the present use of machinery in cassava
cultivation:
a) The hoe remains the principal implement for cultivating, weeding and
harvesting.
b) Basic operations such as ploughing and harrowing, may be done by tractor.
c) A mechanical planter made in Brazil is in use there and in Mexico. It is a tworow planter using a tractor driver and two men on the machine to feed cuttings
from the reserve bins into the rotating planting turntable. In operation, the
cuttings fall in succession through a hole into a furrow opened by a simple
furrower. A pair of disks throw dirt into the furrow and floats pulled by chains
pack the soil over the cuttings. The planter is able to cover about 5 hectares
per day.
d) A unit for ridging and planting has been developed by modifying a ridger to
work as a ridger-cum-planter and a cultivator to work as a six-row planter
after the area has been ridged.
e) A simple machine used in Mexico is a gasoline-powered table saw to prepare
the cuttings for planting. The machine has the advantage of speed and
regularity of produced cuttings. As compared with manual work the time
saving is 3:1.
f) It has been found to be virtually impossible to carry out the first weeding
operation between the ridges with a cultivator. Mechanical weeding of the top
of the ridges presents a number of difficulties.
g) A topping machine consisting of a heavy screen mounted on the front of a
tractor has been developed to push down the tops: then a rotary mower on
the back of the same tractor can cut the downed top to make harvesting by
hand possible. The height at which the tops are cut back can be easily
regulated with any rotary mower.
h) Cassava is not a crop that lends itself readily to mechanical harvesting
because of the way the tubers grow. They may spread over I m and penetrate
50 60 cm. Careless use of machinery for harvesting can damage tubers,
resulting in a darkening due to oxidation that will lower the value of the flour.

However, in Mexico and Thailand, mould-board ploughs have been used to

make hand harvesting less tedious. Stalks can be cut successfully by a midmounted mower or a topping machine, and the roots are lifted mechanically
with a mid-mounted disk terracer. In Ghana, about 2000 m2 could be
harvested in 21/2 hours by a tractor' whereas ordinarily 5 man-days were
required A modified beet or potato harvester has been suggested for use
behind the tractor, with a pulling mechanism in place of the digging shares to
raise the tubers by pulling at the cut stems left after topping.

2. Cassava flour and starch

The separation of the starch granules from the tuber in as pure a form as
possible is essential in the manufacture of cassava flour. The granules are locked in
cells together with all the other constituents of the protoplasm (proteins, soluble
carbohydrates, fats and so on), which can only be removed by a purification process
in the watery phase. Processing the starch can therefore be divided into the following
stages:
1. Preparation and extraction. Crushing of the cells and separation of the
granules from other insoluble matter (i.e.' adhering dirt and cell-wall material)
including the preparatory operations of washing and peeling the roots, rasping
them and straining the pulp with the addition of water.
2. Purification. Substitution of pure water for the aqueous solution surrounding
the starch granules in the mash obtained in the first stage, as well as the
operations of sedimentation and the washing of the starch in tanks and on
flour tables, silting, centrifuging, etc.
3. Removal of water by centrifuging and drying.
4. Finishing. Grinding, bolting and other finishing operations.
This method of processing is essential in the preparation of any kind of starch.
For cassava, however, because of the relatively small amount of secondary
substances, the separation at each stage is performed with great ease. Whereas with
maize and other cereals the grinding of the seed and the mechanical separation of
the germ and the pericarp from the grain present special problems in stage 1, and
the separation of protein and other constituents in stage 2 can only be accomplished
with the aid of chemicals, these operations can be reduced to a minimum in cassava
preparation. It is indeed possible to obtain a first-rate flour from the cassava root
without special equipment by using only pure water. This makes the processing of
cassava flour particularly suitable for rural industries.
Supply of cassava roots
Most starch factories buy cassava roots from growers in their neighbourhood,
directly or through agents. Some factories, however, own their cassava plantations.
Modern processing plants usually contract various growers in the area to supply
roots. In such situations the factory should furnish financial and technical
assistance to the growers, and an agronomist should be assigned to help producers
develop better production practices and to conduct control experiments for
determining the proper varieties, fertilizers, and methods of insect and disease
control for the area.
In many countries, prices are set on the basis of a certain starch content, with
a discount or a premium for deviations from that level, which is determined according
to the locality and the varieties. The starch content in the tubers is determined
subjectively by the factory's representative or objectively by chemical analysis.
Subjective evaluation is done by selecting a medium-size root and snapping it in two.
If the tuber snaps with medium force, the crop is generally regarded as mature and
the flesh will appear firm, white and dry. Such roots are considered to have the
maximum starch content of 30 percent. Low starch flesh from immature tubers is
usually slightly yellow and, although firm, has a translucent watery core. If
considerable force is required to snap the tuber, it is considered to have become
woody and the crop to have passed its prime.
Chemical analysis of the tubers is a truer method for the determination of
starch content, but it requires a laboratory and qualified technicians.

In most cases' root weight is estimated at the farm by simple means which are
not entirely accurate and consequently do not reflect the exact yield. It is therefore
advisable to have special weighing bridges in the factories for recording the weights
of the roots as well as of the final products.
Processing operations
IMPORTANCE OF QUICK PROCESSING
In the processing of cassava starch it is vital to complete the whole process
within the shortest time possible, since as soon as the roots have been dug up, as
well as during each of the subsequent stages of manufacture, enzymatic processes
are apt to develop with a deteriorating effect on the quality of the end product. This
calls for a well-organized supply of roots within relatively short distances of the
processing plant and, furthermore, for an organization of the stages of processing
that will minimize delays in manufacture. Thus, while simple in principle, the
manufacture of a good cassava flour requires great care.
The roots are normally received from the field as soon as possible after harvest
and cannot be stored for more than two days. Since the presence of woody matter or
stones may seriously interfere with the rasping process by stoppage or by breaking
the blades, the woody ends of the roots are chopped off with sharp knives before the
subsequent processing operations.
PEELING AND WASHING
In small and medium-size mills the general practice is to remove the peel (skin
and cortex) and to process only the central part of the root, which is of much softer
texture. With the relatively primitive apparatus available and limited power, the
processing of the whole root would entail difficulties in rasping and in removing dirt,
crude fibre and cork particles, whereas comparatively little extra starch would be
gained.
The structure of the root permits peeling to proceed smoothly by hand (it is
often done by women and children). Work starts in the morning as soon as the roots
are brought in; as it must be finished as quickly as possible, numerous hands are
needed. The roots are cut longitudinally and transversely to a depth corresponding
to the thickness of the peel, which can then be easily removed. Any dirt remaining
on the smooth surface of the core of the root can now be washed off without any
trouble and the peeled roots deposited in cement basins where they remain immersed
in river water until taken out for rasping (Fig. 9). Frequent treading by foot cleans
any loosely adhering dirt from the roots.
In the larger factories, whole roots are generally processed. The washing here
serves to remove the outer skin of the root as well as the adhering dirt. Provided the
root is sufficiently ripe, skin removal may proceed without the use of brushes. Only
the outer skin or corky layer is removed, as it is profitable to recover the starch from
the cortex. The inner part of the peel represents about 815 percent of the weight of
the whole root.
The mechanical washer (Fig. 10) is a perforated cylindrical tank which is
immersed in water. A spiral brush propels the roots while they are subjected to
vigorous scrubbing in order to remove all dirt. A centrifugal pump is fitted to one end
of the machine and connected to a series of jets arranged along the carrying side of
the brush. These jets produce a counter current to the flow of the roots, ensuring
that they receive an efficient washing.
Another efficient washer is a rotary drum with an interior pipe which sprays
water on the roots. The drum is either wooden or perforated metal, about 3 to 4 m

long and 1 m in diameter, with horizontal openings; it is mounted inside a concrete

tank. In some, rotating paddles are fitted along the axis. Washing is done by the
action of water sprayed, assisted by the abrasion of the roots both against one
another and against the sides of the cylinder or the paddles.
The roots are hand-fed from one end and when they come out at the other
they are clean and partially peeled, the action being continuous. Dirty water and skin
are periodically drained out through a small opening in the concrete tank.
Some trials in Brazil have attempted the complete peeling of roots for the
production of a white starch, and also have used copper, brass or bronze equipment
instead of iron, which in contact with wet starch may lead to the production of Ferro
cyanide (the result of a reaction between iron and hydrocyanic acid), which gives the
starch a bluish colour.
In modern factories the roots are pre-washed by soaking in water to separate
the coarse dirt and then passed through a combined unit for washing and peeling as
described above.
RASPING OR PULPING
It is necessary to rupture all cell walls in order to release the starch granules.
This can be done by biochemical or mechanical action. The biochemical method, an
old one, allows the roots to ferment to a certain stage; then they are pounded to a
pulp and the starch is washed from the pulp with water. This method does not give
complete yields and the quality of the resulting starch is inferior. Mechanical action
is carried out by slicing the roots and then rasping, grating or crushing them, which
tears the flesh into a fine pulp.
By pressing the roots against a swiftly moving surface provided with sharp
protrusions, the cell walls are torn up and the whole of the root is turned into a mass
in which the greater part, but not all, of the starch granules is released. The
percentage of starch set free is called the rasping effect. Its value after one rasping
may vary between 70 and 90 percent: the efficiency of the rasping operation therefore
determines to a large extent the overall yield of starch in the processing. It is difficult
to remove all the starch, even with efficient rasping devices, in a single operation.
Therefore, the pulp is sometimes subjected to a second rasping process after
screening. The rasping is carried out in different ways with varying efficiency.
Hand and mechanical rasping
On very small holdings in some cassava-growing regions the roots are still
rasped by hand on bamboo mats. Where daily production amounts to several
hundred kilograms of flour, simple mechanical implements are used.
A simple but effective grater is obtained by perforating a sheet of galvanized
iron with a nail and then clamping it around a wheel with the sharp protruding rims
of the nail openings turned outward. The wheel may be driven by hand, but it is often
driven by foot like a tricycle, the worker pressing the roots from above onto the
rasping surface: or the rasping surface is attached to one side of a rotating disk
equipped with a crank transmission, which is driven by foot. The pulp is collected in
baskets or wooden containers to be carried to the sieves.
Hydraulic raspers
Larger water-powered raspers can be used where running water is available.
The waterwheel is rotated by a flywheel and driving belts to a pulley on the shaft of
the rasping drum. The drum. 20-30 cm in diameter is either attached to a primitive
wooden construction or fitted into a "rasping table." The operator seated at the table,

presses the roots against the drum. The grated mass is forced through a narrow slit
between the drum and the shelf before it drops into the trough, whence it is carried
to the sieves.
The rasping devices described above are made of perforated in-plate. Though
inexpensive, they are relatively inefficient as the rasping plate must often be replaced
on account of rapid wear.
Engine-driven raspers
Engine-driven raspers are more economical when production rises above a
certain level - say, for the handling of 10 tons of fresh roots a day. The most current
model is the Jahn rasper. The machine has a rotor of hardwood or drawn steel tube,
50 cm in diameter, with a number of grooves milled longitudinally to take the rasping
blades or saws. The number of saw teeth on the blades varies from 10 to 12 per
centimetre according to need. The blades are spaced 6-7 mm apart on the rotor.
In simpler versions, the rotor is fitted into a housing in such a way that the
rasping surface forms part of the back wall of the receptacle for the roots. Facing the
rasping surface, a block or board is inserted which is movable by a lever and turns
on an axis near the upper rim of the compartment. By manipulating this buffer the
roots are pressed onto the rasping surface, which moves downward in the hopper,
and the mass is propelled through a slit in the bottom of the hopper. It is advisable
to give the inner surface of the buffer the form of a circular segment corresponding
to the section of the rotor exposed so that, at its extreme position inward, the distance
between rotor and block is only a few millimetres. This, however, is generally possible
only in the all-steel raspers to be described later.
In many medium-size factories, water is run into the hopper during rasping,
in order to facilitate crushing and removal of pulp. The drawback of this practice,
however, is that relatively large fragments of the roots escape crushing; hence it is
not to be recommended from the point of view of effectiveness. It is never applied in
well-equipped factories.
In a rasper of the type used in larger factories, the housing is equipped with
adjustable breasts with sharp steel edges for the control of rasping fineness. More
recent constructions provide for the return to the rasping surfaces of those pieces of
the roots which were thrown out sideways. The pulp has to pass a screen-plate with
sharp-edged holes or slits, during which it is homogenized to a certain degree and,
in fact, undergoes a secondary crushing.
Power consumption during rasping
To obtain the maximum rasping effect, the power supply should be accurately
attuned to the constructional details of the rasper, i.e., to the distance between the
surface of the rotor and the breasts in the housing.
The energy required to tear up the roots is derived from the momentum of the
rotor, a certain minimum of kinetic energy being necessary to obtain any rasping
effect. Above a certain rotor speed, however, it is to be expected that no considerable
further increase in the rasping effect will be obtained. There is thus an optimum
speed for the rasper in conformity with the need for a high rasping effect on the one
hand and with the economy of power supply on the other. In this connection it should
be remembered that only the linear velocity of the rasping surface counts. In practice
it has been found that a rasper of the usual dimensions - a diameter of 40-50 cm
and a length of 30-50 cm for the rotor - should be driven at 1000 rotations per
minute, corresponding to a linear velocity of the rasping surface of about 25 m per

second. The power of the engine required to drive a single rasper of this type is 2030 hp. In most cases diesel engines are used.
Variations in resistance of the roots to rasping
At or near optimum speed of the rasper, both rasping effect and energy
required per I 000 kg of fresh roots still depend a good deal on the kind of roots being
treated. Comparative results obtained for six different varieties of cassava, peeled
and unpeeled, with an electrically driven experimental rasper reproducing as far as
possible the form and working conditions in medium-size factories are given in Table
3. As is to be expected, high rasping effects involve a lower use of energy. The
influence of peeling the root is important in both respects.
Secondary rasping or grinding
In view of these results it is no wonder that the rasping effect differs widely in
different factories. In modern factories, it may be estimated that an effect of about
85 percent is attained at the first rasping; at these production levels, however, it is
economical to submit the pulp to a second crushing process, either in a second
rasper or in special mills where the pulp is ground between stones. These mills,
however, do not seem to have found much favour with cassava manufacturers.
In a secondary rasper, the indentation of the saw blades should be somewhat
finer, about 10 per centimetre (25 to 27 teeth per inch) as compared with about 810
per centimetre (19 to 26 teeth per inch) for the primary rasper. The overall rasping
effect is raised to over 90 percent by the secondary rasper.
The differences in output under different rasping techniques are shown by the
following figures: in one medium-size factory, using a single Jahn rasper, the
capacity was at most three tons of roots per hour; a larger factory, working with
primary and secondary raspers, achieved more than double this amount per hour
per primary and secondary rasper unit.
TABLE 3. - RASPING EFFECT AND ENERGY REQUIRED FOR ROOTS OF
DIFFERENT VARIETIES
Variety
Mangi
Basic rao
Tapicuru
Sc Pedro Preto
Bogor
1In

Rasping effect
Unpeeled
Peeled
62.7
80.4
67.2
79.4
66.3
67.5
67.4
68.7
62.1
60.5

Rasping energy1
Unpeeled
Peeled
6.76
6.62
7.15
6.31
5.30
5.21
3.44
4.47
4.05

kWh per 1000 kg of free starch produced.

SCREENING
In separating the pulp from the free starch a liberal amount of water must be
added to the pulp as it is delivered by the rasper, and the resulting suspension stirred
vigorously before screening. Mixing with water can be carried out more or less
separately from screening, but more often the two operations are combined in "wet
screening" - that is' the mass is rinsed with the excess water on a screen which is in
continuous motion.
Hand screening
In the smallest mills, screening is done by hand. The rasped root mass is put
in batches on a cloth fastened on four poles and hanging like a bag above the drain
leading directly to the sedimentation tanks. Spring water or purified river water is

run in from a pipe above the bag, and the pulp is vigorously stirred with both hands.
Sometimes bamboo basketwork is used to support the screening cloth. The pulp
under processing still contains appreciable amounts of starch and therefore has a
certain value (e.g., as a cattle fodder): in the small mills it is pressed out by hand,
and the lumps obtained are dried on racks in a well-ventilated place.
The rotating screen
A simple form of rotating screen consists of a conical frame of hardwood, fixed
on a hollow, horizontal axis, at least 3 m long, covered with ordinary cloth or
phosphor-bronze gauze. Phosphor-bronze is often preferred for its durability, but its
use necessitates frequent brushing in order to remove clogging pulp particles. The
crude pulp is fed into the cone at the narrow end and by the rotation of the screen,
at approximately 50 revolutions per minute, slowly moves down to the other end,
whence it is conveyed to the pulp tanks. In the meantime, water is sprayed on it
under pressure (e.g., 6 atmospheres) from a number of openings in the hollow shaft.
Thus, by the time the pulp reaches the lower end of the cone, it is more or less
completely washed out. The rotation screen has the advantage of preventing the
plugging of the meshes of the sieve with gummy materials (they tend to agglutinate
with the fibre as the screen rotates). The flour milk is caught in a cemented basin
stretching out below the screen over its whole length, and from there runs along
channels into sedimentation tanks or flour tables.
The screen is mounted close to the rasper and at a somewhat lower level in
order to ease the flow of the crude pulp. The washed-out pulp discharged at the lower
end of the screen is carried off by some form of conveyor to basins outside the factory.
Since its dry matter still consists mostly of starch, this by-product after drying and
pulverizing is marketed as a fodder.
A more elaborate type of rotating screen is equipped with two sets of brushes,
one set being arranged to convey the fibre along to the discharge, the other acting as
beaters, which at the same time keep the screens clear to allow the starch milk to
flow away readily. Both sets of brushes are adjustable, so that excessive wear on the
bristles can be taken up and the maximum life obtained from them. The screens are
carried in aluminium frames which are removable for changing covers. Up to now a
single rotating screen is most generally used in factories of medium capacity. In
larger factories, for economic reasons, the starch must be extracted from the whole
root as thoroughly as possible with the minimum amount of water. This often implies
a more intricate arrangement of the operation of rasping and screening as well as
more efficient screening devices.
The shaking screen
In large factories the rotating screen is replaced by the shaking screen. It
consists of a slightly inclined, horizontal frame, 4 m in length and covered with gauze,
which is put into a lengthwise shaking motion in short strokes by means of an
eccentric rod. The fresh pulp, after being mixed with water in distribution tanks, is
conducted by pipes to the higher end of the screen; during screening, the pulp
remaining on top of the screen is slowly pushed downward by the shaking motion.
It is advantageous to let the suspensions pass a series of shaking screens of
increasing fineness (80-, 150-, and 260-mesh), the first one retaining the coarse
pulp, the others the fine particles. The pulp remaining on the first of these screens
is often subjected to a second rasping or milling operation and then returned to the
screening station.
Another means of increasing efficiency is to perform the combined operations
of screening and washing the pulp in two stages. In the first stage' the pulp is

vigorously stirred with water in a washer provided with coarse screens at the bottom
and with paddles in order to obtain thorough mixing during the transport of the pulp
toward the end of the trough. In the second stage, the crude flour milk from these
washers is conducted to a shaking screen below, which retains the rest of the fine
pulp. The operation is twice repeated with the pulp thus obtained in similar washerand-screen units, which may be arranged in a battery.
The complete separation of free starch from pulp is achieved here by the
counter current principle. In the third (lower) washer, the pulp from a first rasping
is washed out with flour milk from the second washer-and-screen unit. The pulp
from this first treatment passes a secondary rasper, whence it is conveyed to the
washer, where it is rinsed with starch milk from the first (upper) washer-and-screen
unit. Finally, the pulp is conveyed to the upper washer where fresh water is run in.
Efficient rising of the pulp on the screens is promoted by inserting one or more
shallow transverse channels in the surface of the screen, where the strong whirling
movements caused by the shaking of the screen effectively loosen the starch granules
from the pulp.
Jet extractors
An efficient machine for the separation of starch from cellulose fibre is the jet
extractor, or the continuous perforated-basket centrifuge. The starch-pulp slurry is
put in a conical basket and centrifugal action separates the starch dispersion from
the fibrous pulp. Jets of water sprayed on the pulp as it travels the length of the cone
assure complete recovery of the starch.
The Dorr-Olivier DSM screen
Another type of modern equipment used in the starch industry for the
complete separation and washing of fibre is the Dorr-Oliver inclined DSM screen,
which consists of a stationary screen housing equipped with a con cave wedge bartype screen (see Fig. 11). The suspension to be screened is fed tangentially either by
gravity or under pressure into the screen-plate and flows in a direction perpendicular
to the bars. Each bar of the screen surface slices off a layer of liquid of a thickness
approximately one fourth the slot width. Different types of screens, with slot widths
ranging from 50 up to 3 mm, are used in the starch industry.
After rasping, the starch-pulp slurry flows down the DSM screen by gravity
and the pulp and starch are separated. As many as four screens are operated in
series to assure that the starch dispersion is completely separated from the pulp.
The pulp from one screen is discharged into a basin, re-dispersed with dilution water,
and pumped to the succeeding screen.
SETTLING AND PURIFICATION OF STARCH
The term "settlings' as used here includes the whole series of operations for
separating the pure starch from soluble contaminants. The quality of the flour
produced depends to a great extent on the proper performance of these operations,
which comprise settling in successive tanks, settling on flour tables, and the action
of modern separators. Each operation can be used alone or carried out in different
combinations. They all result in a more or less concentrated suspension of starch in
pure water.
Duration of settling process and quality of product
As has already been stated, the entire processing of cassava must be
completed within as short a time as possible. This is particularly true of the
separation of the free starch from its suspension in the so-called fruit-water - the

watery part of crude starch milk - because of the very rapid chemical changes in this
solution (the formation of very stable complexes between starch and proteins, fatty
material and so on). As it is almost impossible to separate the pure starch from these
complexes, the value of the flour for many purposes is seriously lowered by those
processes.
At a later stage - the fruit-water being rather rich in sugars and other nutrients
- microorganisms start to develop and eventually lead to a vigorous fermentation.
Alcohols and organic acids are produced, among which butyric acid is particularly
noticeable on account of its odour. These biochemical changes exert a negative
influence on the quality of the flour similar to the foregoing physicochemical ones. It
is all but impossible to prevent the formation of this acid in the processing of cassava;
traces of it are discernible even in very good brands of the finished flour. Indeed small
rural mills can often be located by the smell of butyric acid.
As a consequence of the necessity for speed, the technique of settling has
developed rationally from the simple settling tank to the settling table, with a
considerable reduction in the time of contact between starch and fruit water. In
modern processing methods the whole period between rasping and drying is reduced
to about one hour.
Before the different methods of settling are discussed in detail a few of the
fundamental facts on sedimentation should be discussed.
Settling and granule size
Besides this, other factors such as the pH of the medium and its content of
protein and other colloidal matter through the corresponding changes in colloidal
state have some influence on the rate of sedimentation and especial on the
consistency of the settled flour.
The diameter of cassava starch granules ranges between 4 and 24 microns:
thus a gradation according to granule size has to be expected in successively
deposited layers of sediment. This gradation will sharpen with the length of the path
of sedimentation from the initially mixed suspension. Therefore during tank
sedimentation the lower layers will contain granules of a wide range of sizes, settled
during the first stages of filling the tanks with the crude starch milk. The gradation
mentioned will only be noticeable if the tanks are filled entirely. The size distribution
found experimentally in a sediment of 30-cm thickness after 24 hours of settling
hears out these expectations as shown in Table 4.
It is seen that gradation by particle size sets in above one third the height of
sediment. The standard deviation in the top layer is relatively large. It can be seen
that this layer contains many granules of all sizes which under the microscope have
a corroded appearance. Moreover, one finds a certain proportion of fine cellulosic
debris precipitated proteinous and other organic matter.
In sedimentation on flour tables a corresponding gradation may be expected
in this case with respect to the distance from the head of the table.
TABLE 4. - SIZE DISTRIBUTION OF GRANULES IN SEDIMENT OF CASSAVA
STARCH
Sediment layers
Lower layer at bottom
At 1/3 height
At centre
At 2/3 height

Most frequent
diameter
14
16
12
12

Average diameter
14.5
14.5
11.7
10.9

Standard
deviation
3.7
3.9
4.1
4.3

At 0.3 cm from surface

Top layer (light flour)

8
6 9.

9.6
4

4.5
4.4

1 Micron = 0.001 millimetre.

Centrifugal separators, however, will produce a uniform mixture of granules
of all sizes which occur in the starting material.
Settling in tanks
This is the oldest method, and, indeed, tanks are the obvious means at low
production levels in small rural mills. In very small mills, wooden barrels or troughs
serve the purpose, but as soon as the production reaches several hundred kilograms
of flour per day it is usual to construct tanks of cemented brickwork sunk into the
ground. Rectangular and round tanks or basins are used in the Far East for the
settling of starch as well as for the washing and the purification of the settled starch,
as shown in Figure 12. The dimensions and the number of tanks are determined by
level of production and convenience of handling (e.g., 2 x 4 m in surface dimensions
and 0.5 to 1 m in depth).
It is essential that the flour does not remain in contact with cement or
masonry any longer than necessary, as this has a notably deteriorating influence on
the quality of the flour. Therefore the bottom of the tanks is covered with wood of a
kind which is proof against the prolonged action of the slurry and does not react on
the flour. A wooden skirting, moreover, is fitted on the walls to a height of, say, 1015 cm so that the whole mass of flour contained in a tank full of starch milk will
settle against a wooden surface. The lining may be of tiles rather than wood. Holes
provided with stoppers are fitted into the walls, preferably at different heights, to let
off the supernatant, or excess, liquid after settling, one hole just above the floor being
used for the purpose of cleaning the tank between settlings.
During this process a number of tanks are usually filled in succession, the
flow of starch milk being conducted to the next tank, after the previous one has been
filled up, by means of checks placed in the channels. Settling takes at least six hours;
thus, after rasping which is carried out early in the morning, the supernatant liquid
is let off in the afternoon. However, rasping is often carried out late in the morning,
and in that case the flour is left to settle overnight, up to 20 hours or more. Though
settling is more complete in this case, the action of enzymes and microorganisms
may also have progressed.
The fruit-water is now let off by removing the stoppers from the holes,
beginning with the upper ones, thus reducing turbulence as far as possible.
Notwithstanding this, in drawing off the last of the supernatant liquid, appreciable
amounts of the lighter starch fractions in the upper layers of the sediment go with
it; as in general, the drain waters are not processed in these small mills' they
constitute a loss, which together with the starch originally left in suspension may be
estimated at 5-10 percent of the flour produced.
The upper layer of sedimented flour, which has a yellowish green tint, contains
many impurities and is generally scraped off and rejected. The remaining moist flour
is then stirred up with water and left to settle again. In most cases, two settlings
suffice to obtain a reasonably clean flour. In larger factories producing flours for
special purposes, settling may be repeated several times with or without the addition
of chemicals.
The pour table
In large factories of medium size a great step forward in the settling operation
has been taken through the replacement of the settling tanks by flour tables or

basins. Because of the space it occupies, a table is generally practical only in

medium-size and larger factories.
The flour table is a shallow channel, some 50 m long, about 30 cm deep and
of a width varying with the amount of starch to be worked up daily. The bottom is
covered with wood or tiles, as described in the previous section, and in principle
should be horizontal, though it is sometimes given a slight inclination, say of 1 cm
per metre.
The flour milk enters at one end, preferably from a compartment of the table
itself, occupying over one half metre of its length and separated by a silt about 20
cm high, which ensures a uniform overflow over the whole width of the table. The
liquid drawn off at the end of the table should be substantially free of starch and is
thus rejected.
In settling on a table, the sedimentation path of the starch granules, which is
vertical in the case of settling in tanks, will be drawn out into oblique lines on account
of the horizontal movement of the slurry. The longer the time needed by any particle
to pass from its position in the suspension down to the bottom, the further its
ultimate place in the sediment will be from the head of the table. The stratification
obtained in settling tanks is therefore in the present case partly converted into a
differentiation as to granule size over the length of the table. Hence, floating or very
slowly deposited fibre and dirt particles, including protein, will be removed at the end
of the table, and the flour settling on the higher parts will contain a larger proportion
of the larger starch granules and very little of the protein and other contaminants.
Thus, the sediment on these parts of the table constitutes, generally, a better grade
of flour, the rest being worked up as a lower grade. As the time of settling for all
particles is much shorter than in settling tanks, the contact of the starch with the
fruit-water is likewise considerably reduced.
As settling is most copious at the upper end of the table and slowly falls off
toward the far end, the sediment soon shows the effect of an inclination of the table
itself. As the working proceeds, the movement of the slurry is therefore accelerated
on the upper end, tending to accentuate the difference in quality.
The flour table acts most efficiently if filled to maximum capacity. Some
factories which must work up different quantities from day to day have flour tables
of varying width - say, 2, 3 and 4 m.
The advantages of the flour table over the settling tank may be summed up as
follows:
1. The time of contact of the flour with the fruit-water is shortened.
2. The starch settled on different parts of the table is differentiated according to
purity and granule size, thus enabling the manufacturer to produce
simultaneously and without extra cost at least two brands of different quality.
3. Losses of fine starch are far less because the sedimentation path is much
shorter and drainage proceeds at a minimum rate.
Influence of chemicals on settling and the properties of the product
It may therefore be surmised that' apart from the rate of settling, the right
consistency of sediment is important in achieving an efficient separation of the starch
from the fruit-water. The starch losses incurred with draining in settling tanks will
decrease as the starch settles to a firm cake, and even the efficiency of tabling will
depend partly on the compactness of the sediment.
Pure starch settles in clean water to a compact mass of peculiar mechanical
properties. If suddenly broken up (e.g., with a scoop) it crumbles like a brittle

substance: but as soon as the forces causing deformation relax' it loses all form and
spreads out like a thick syrup (melting. as it were, on the scoop). This phenomenon.
termed dilatancy is explained by imagining the granules in the sediment, when at
rest piled up on one another in the most space-saving manner' whereas any
disturbance of this array by external forces results in an increase of the interstitial
volume accompanied by a " drying up" of the cake. The same factors may give the
dry flour its "crunchy" property.
The volume of the sediment and its compactness depend very much on the
presence of impurities, such as fibre, which tend to result in a softer sediment. Apart
from this, it has been found that the composition and the reaction of the ambient
solution have an important influence on settling. An acid reaction promotes rapid
settling and a compact sediment; an alkaline reaction has the opposite effect.
As in many medium-size factories chemicals are added for various purposes
before settling, it seems worthwhile to review in some detail the effect of the
substances most often applied, both on the consistency of the sediment and on the
properties of the product.
It should, however' be emphasized that there is little sense in adding chemical
aids where the basic conditions for the production of a high-quality flour are not
fulfilled in particular if clean working is not put first and foremost. On this condition
there is no doubt that a flour of prime quality can be produced without the use of
any chemicals. Moreover because of the danger of misapplication, these additions
are not to be recommended without the expert supervision as a rule available only
in large factories.
Sulphuric acid in many instances this acid, which is added as an aid to
sedimentation results in a product of enhanced whiteness. The effect on
sedimentation is noticeable at concentrations above 0.001 ml of the concentrated
acid (specific gravity 1.84) per litre of starch of 2" Brix. (Degrees Brix are about
proportional to the grams of flour per litre.) Addition of ten times the quantity causes
very rapid sedimentation, but a rather soft sediment is obtained. The effect of this
chemical in lowering the viscosity of the product is already appreciable at very small
concentrations. Up to about 0.001 ml per litre of starch milk there is a slight increase
in viscosity; at higher concentrations a marked decrease. The latter effect is a
disadvantage in most applications of the flour; however, it is less so in the
manufacture of baked products as whiteness is all-important.
Great care should be taken in adding this chemical, which should only be
used in diluted form, prepared beforehand, and thereafter removed by one or more
subsequent settlings in pure water.
Alum (aluminium sulphate). The presence of alum in the starch milk may be
the consequence of the addition of a surplus of this chemical in the purification of
the water used. It has a favourable effect on sedimentation, and also enhances the
viscosity of the flour, an addition of 0.1 g per lire of starch milk of 2" Brix resulting
in an increase of about 50 percent in viscosity.
Sulphur dioxide (sulphurous acid). The addition of sulphur dioxide is a
common practice in the manufacture of most grain starches (e.g.' maize starch). It
probably helps to separate the starch from the other substances to which it is more
or less firmly bound in its protoplasmic state. Furthermore, it keeps bacterial and
enzymatic action within bounds. Sulphur dioxide also acts as a bleaching agent,
although the white colour thus obtained soon deteriorates. The acid produces a
lowering of the viscosity of the product, especially after prolonged action, but e single

settling from water containing the usual concentration of 0.3 to 0.4 g per litre
followed by settling in pure water has no serious effect.
It is questionable whether the use of sulphur dioxide is advantageous in the
processing of root starches and in particular of cassava. In any case, the acid should
be applied with great caution and thereafter carefully washed out by subsequent
settlings in pure water.
Chlorine. The addition of active chlorine in its different forms (the element
itself, chloride of lime or one of the various commercial hypo chlorites) considerably
augments the viscosity of the product' provided the concentration is kept low - about
I mg per hire of starch milk. At that concentration it acts favourably on
sedimentation, while its disinfecting and bleaching properties are also very marked,
the sediment obtained being compact and white. Higher concentrations of about 50
mg per litre result in a very soft and discoloured sediment and a product of very low
viscosity. These properties of active chlorine preparations make them the very best
means of obtaining an end product of better quality.
Sedimentation processes
Up to the Second World War, the sedimentation processes used in large
cassava factories usually consisted of refinement in tanks and on tables. Separation
by centrifuging, though practiced in the starch industries using potato and maize as
raw material, does not seem to have found wide application with cassava during this
period. Since then, more efficient centrifugal processes for the separation and
cleaning of starch in general have been devised. Although originally designed for the
processing of potato and maize starch, both machines and centrifuges of a more
conventional type are now beginning to be applied in the cassava industry, and it
may be expected that at the higher production levels they will soon supersede other
methods.
Sedimentation on one flour table is not usually sufficient to effect a complete
separation of pure starch from slurry. One obvious defect of both tables and
sedimentation tanks is that they do not separate contaminating particles heavier
than starch (sand, clay). In the large factories, when producing a high-grade flour
the product is collected, after a first tabling, in containers with conical bottoms,
where it is stirred moderately with fresh water. Heavy particles settle in the lower
part of these stirring tanks and can be discharged from time to time from a tap in
the bottom. The flour milk obtained is then pumped to a second table or set of parallel
tables, where settling takes place. To prevent any reaction between the flour milk
and the wall material, these channels may be coated with a resistant material such
as aluminium.
The action of this second tabling operation is different when the table is
inclined. Apart from settling in the channels, the more rapid motion of the liquid
subjects the underlying sediment of flour to silting - that is, the starch granules and
other particles, even after settling, are carried along with the stream to be deposited
farther on.
The drag exerted by the stream on a body at the bottom increases with its
dimensions. Therefore, the more voluminous fibre particles, which on account of
their specific gravity might settle on the higher parts of a table, will be swept down
to the lower end by silting. Silting thus supplements the purification obtained by the
flour table; in addition' it tends to homogenize the settled starch mass.
Concentration of flour milk in all sedimentation processes has definite limits.
In particular, during tabling the suspension should contain no more than 25-30 g of
starch per litre. Higher concentrations will result in an undesirable lengthening of

the sedimentation time. In silting higher concentrations, up to 250 g per litre, are
allowed.
The supervision of the concentration is best carried out by measuring the
density of the slurry with hydrometers. It is usually expressed in degrees Brix, a
standard taken over from the sugar industry (grams of sucrose per litre at 17C The
relation between the latter quantity. specific gravity, and hydrometer readings
according to Brix and Baum for different starch suspensions at room temperature
is presented in Table 5.
TABLE 5. - DENSITY OF STARCH SLURRIES OK VARIOUS CONCENTRATIONS AT
ROOM TEMPERATURE (20C)
Air-dry starch
(15 % moisture)
5.0
10.0
15.0
20.0
25.0
30.0
35.0
40.0
45.0

Dry starch
4.2
8.5
12.7
17.0
21.2
25.5
29.7
34.0
38.2

Specific
gravity
1 000
1 001
1 003
1 004
1 006
1 007
1 008
1 010
1 011

Degrees Brix
0.4
0.8
1.1
1.5
1.9
2.2
2.6
3.0
3.4

Degrees
Baum (B)
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1.0
1.2
1.4
1.6

Lamellators
The principle of cutting down the settling distance of the starch granules, as
achieved by the use of a flour table is followed also in the construction of lamellators:
oblique plates (lamellae) of glass or metal (for cassava only copper can be utilized)
are fitted radially into the upper part of conical tanks, the lower part being provided
with a stirring device and a tap. The flour milk enters the centre of the upper part
and from there flows radially and at low velocity through the spaces between the
lamellae and over the outer rim of the cone.
The path of free sedimentation of the starch granules is limited here to the
vertical distance between two adjacent plates, which amounts to a few centimetres
only, after which they roll down more rapidly along the surface of the plates into the
lower part of the cone. The larger granules will thus sink in the central part of the
apparatus and will collect at the bottom of the cone; the finer grains will settle at the
periphery and collect on the conical wall. As small granules slip along an inclined
surface faster than large ones, clogging on the walls is minimized. Clogging of the
flour in the spaces between the lamellae is prevented by their radial arrangement,
each interspace widening in the direction of flow of the suspension.
Centrifugal methods
A rapid separation of starch grains from fruit liquor and the elimination of the
impurities in colloidal suspension are attained by centrifuging, with consequent
improvement in quality of the finished product. Centrifuging cannot, however,
replace entirely the gravity settling operation: after centrifuging the starch still has
to be freed from any remaining solid impurities by settling in tanks or on tables.
One of the current conventional types of centrifugal separator consists mainly
of a horizontal imperforate drum or bowl (Figs. 13, 14) with a continuous spiralribbon starch remover or scraping device inside (A, D). The drum rotates in a frame
with bearings at both ends. Over a gearbox, the drum and the scraper are driven at
slightly different speeds by a direct-coupled motor. The starch milk enters the slightly

conical drum at the narrow end (B) and passes to the other end where the liquid
outlet (E) is located. On its way through the howl the milk throws off starch grains
and other solid matter' which concentrate at the periphery. Here the concentrate is
taken up by the scraper and brought counter-current to the narrow end where it is
discharged (c) with the addition of fresh water The purest starch is made by using
liberal amounts of soft water. Hard water (high in lime content) has been known to
leave calcium oxalate in the finished product.

FIGURE 14. Longitudinal section of a centrifugal separator

The rapid displacement of fruit liquor by fresh water has been brought to a
certain degree of perfection in machines known as concentrators.
The current type of concentrator illustrated in Figures 15 and 16 consists of
a separator bow with a double wall which turns on a hollow spindle (I). The starch
slurry is fed through the inlet (a and b) into the inner howl (C) where it is pressed by
centrifugal force onto the inner wall, which is fitted with a number of nozzles of
special design. At the same time water is pumped by a centrifugal pump (K) along
the hollow spindle into the water chamber between the inner shells anti the outer
howl wall. This wall is provided with similar nozzles located just opposite those in
the inner shell. The fresh water from the water chamber enters the nozzles in the
inner shell thus intensively washing the starch coming out of these openings and the
diluted treat-water leaves the apparatus through 1 after passing a set of separating
disks and a paring device serving to quench excessive frothing.

FIGURE 15. Cross section of a starch concentrator

The starch' together with fresh water, is pressed through the outer nozzles
and leaves the apparatus through e as a concentrated suspension in substantially
clean water.
The capacity of the separator depends primarily on the size of the starch
granules: the throughput capacity will be lower for fine-grained starches. In fact'
some loss of starch with the separated fruit-water is inevitable' because very small
starch granules will escape sedimentation under any circumstances. It is claimed
that such losses are smaller than in other centrifugal processes. Moreover the
separator consumes less power and its operation is less sensitive to variations in the
starch concentration of the treated starch milk' which otherwise often results in
clogging. Separators of this type are easy to install and do not need foundations: in
operation' however they require expert supervision.
The action of the separators (concentrators) is completed by rapid batch wise
settlings in bowl centrifuges or in purifiers where the purest starch is the first to
settle in a thick layer on the bowl wall' followed by strata of starch mixed with FINE
fibre ("grey starch"), the fruit-water forming the inner layer. In the older types of
centrifuges the operation is discontinued after a few minutes' the water is let off, and
the grey starch is removed by washing. The purified starch is then stirred up with
fresh water and either drawn off for dewatering or subjected to a second centrifuging.
The newest purifiers have the advantage of performing the above operations
while the bowl is in motion. As shown in Figure 17, the bowl or drum turns on a rigid
axis and is furnished with a winged feeding chamber. The bowl is fed through a tube
(1) The pivot arm (2) carries an agitator (3) and a knife (4) which skims off the fruitwater and scrapes off the grey starch, both of which are discharged through an
opening in the bottom of the bowl. The skimmer (5) for purified starch milk is
mounted on another pivot. These tools are operated hydraulically and make about a
quarter turn from one extreme position to the other.
The operation of a purifier is usually linked directly with that of the above
concentrators, the crude starch milk being first washed and concentrated to 1618B by two concentrators in series.
The starch dispersion is washed with large quantities of water in a series of
wooden tubs, settling tanks or basins as described before or in refiners and
separators. The crude starch is transferred by hand or in baskets from the settling
tanks into the washing tubs or basins, where the starch is agitated vigorously with
clear water and then allowed to settle for 6-12 hours. This process is repeated several
times until the starch is thoroughly purified. During settling, the starch sediment is
sometimes covered with cloth to absorb the excessive moisture. However, in modern
factories, two types of equipment are used for the purification of starch:
1. The Merco centrifugal separator, which is based on the well-known creamseparation principle. The separator features an integral return-flow principle
which ensures a continuous and uniform output of solid products by recycling
a portion of the underflow back into the rotor. This creates a flushing action
and permits the use of a rotor nozzle size sufficiently large to prevent clogging.

FIGURE 17 Horizontal section of a current type of purifier

2. The Starcosa channel separator, which involves the non-turbulent flow of
starch dispersion over dividing plates for the purpose of separating the heavier
fine fibres from the lighter starch water dispersion.
Preliminary drying by centrifugation
At higher production levels in larger factories, technical and economic reasons
have led to the adoption of a system in which concentrated slurries of pure starch
are concentrated or thickened by mechanical means to a moisture content of 35 40
percent before drying by evaporation. Mechanical dewatering is generally performed
in dewatering centrifuges, although continuously working vacuum filters are also
used especially in combination with modern tunnel driers.
The centrifuges for this purpose are of the basket type, as shown in Figure 18,
equipped with a perforated bowl lined with a filter of cloth, small-mesh wire netting
or the like. The starch is fed by batches as a slurry of 23B; during centrifuging, the
water is removed through the filter and the starch settles on the bowl wall in the
form of a cylindrical cake. Some fine fibre and dirt always cover the inner surface of
the cake and are scraped off before discharging the batch. Cassava starch, like other
fine-grained starches, has properties allowing it to form a very firm sediment in the
bowl, which is difficult to clear by hand or even with a mechanical clearing device.
The most useful form of centrifuge is thus equipped with an exchangeable set-in
which permits removal of the whole batch of starch after centrifuging. Vertical
positions on the ground plate of the set-in facilitate the discharge.
In general, centrifugal drying, which brings down the moisture content to
about 40 percent, is linked up with some form of evaporation drying in a continuous

process. While a great variety of such driers are available in commerce only a few
which are especially suited to the drying of starch will be described here.
DRYING
The removal of free water from the starch sediment obtained in settling tanks
and on flour tables or from the concentrated slurries produced by separators and
purifiers can be partly accomplished by mechanical means (e.g., centrifugation). The
final drying, however must always be performed by evaporation, either in the open
air (sun drying) or in ovens. In modern factories, oven drying is always combined
with mechanical drying, the whole operation, as in all other phases of the process,
being conducted so as to take the least possible time.
Sun drying
As the sun is the cheapest source of heat, all small mills and many mediumsize factories resort to this kind of drying despite the problems and the risk of
contamination involved. The flour cake left after draining in the sedimentation tank
or on the flour table is scooped up and after crumbling (sometimes with the aid of
coarse matting or a wire screen) is spread out on basketwork trays about 1m in
diameter. Each tray is covered with as much of the wet product as contains some
0.5 kg of dry starch. The trays may be placed on the ground itself, but preferably
should be laid on racks 1 m above the ground (Fig. 19). In this way, besides direct
radiation, the heat reflected from the ground aids drying while the circulation of air
is ensured on both sides of the layer of flour.
It is preferable to begin the drying process soon after sunrise so that in fair
weather and a dry atmosphere it can be completed in one day. Often, however, this
does not suffice, and before sundown the trays are stacked up on the factory
premises. During the night, evaporation continues slowly, aided by the retained sun
warmth, and is completed the next day in the open air. In the course of drying, a
number of workers continually crumble the lumps of starch on the trays to speed up
the drying. The crude flour is considered sufficiently dry when the remaining lumps
are too hard to be crumbled by hand. The moisture content is then between 15 and
20 percent.
An important advantage of sun drying is the bleaching action of the ultraviolet
rays. At the same time, however, a certain chemical degradation sets in, ultimately
having an unfavourable influence on the quality of the product. Besides,
contamination by dust cannot be entirely avoided during sun drying, especially on
windy days; a lowered whiteness and the occurrence of "specks" will result. Finally,
the baskets have to be cleansed regularly with a solution of bleaching powder, in
order to prevent contamination by microorganisms. Even then, the baskets are
subject to rapid wear and have to be replaced frequently.
Given sufficient space and the necessary number of baskets (about 5 000), a
daily output of 2 tons of dry flour may be realized with sun drying. Of course, in
cases like this, the manufacture would gain very much in efficiency and stability if
drying were accelerated and concentrated in a smaller space by the use of ovens. At
medium production levels ovens are rarely used, however, because both the
installation and use of ovens, apart from the initial expense and the cost of fuel,
require some engineering knowledge. Until now a completely satisfactory solution of
the drying problem for medium-size factories has not been found. Rather primitive
oven driers are used here and there, whereas factories with a somewhat higher daily
output employ chamber and drum driers. The latter two types, applied in the
manufacture of baked tapioca products, are described below.
Drying ovens

The simplest type of oven consists of a firing tunnel of brickwork covered with
galvanized iron or copper plates on which the moist flour is spread in a thin layer.
Firing should be moderate, so as to keep the temperature of the plates well below the
gelatinization point of the starch, and the flour should be frequently raked up. The
space above the oven should be vigorously ventilated. In Malaysia and other parts of
the Far East, ovens called "drying yards," about 30-40 m long and 3-5 m wide are
used for the drying of cassava starch. Enough wood is burned in the tunnel to heat
the cement surface to the required temperature (see Fig. 20). The number of drying
yards ranges from two to five, depending on the size of the factory and the kinds of
products.

FIGURE 21. Sectional view of a chamber drier

Chamber drier
The chamber drier consists of a number of adjoining compartments with
insulated walls, each one equipped with heating, ventilating and control devices. The
wet material is placed on the trays which are either directly introduced into the
chamber drier or loaded on a trolley that is pushed into the drier. The process can
be rendered more economic in this kind of drier by a system of air circulation. In a
model drier, the air current produced by the screw fan is warmed by a heating
element and moves across the material to be dried, giving off heat while taking up
water vapour from the moist flour (Fig. 21). Through the adjustable slot a small part
of the circulated air is discharged from the chamber, and at the same time a

corresponding quantity of fresh air is drawn in from the outside, whereas the main
air current recommences the cycle as described above. A considerable reduction of
the drying time can be obtained by the insertion of air-guiding surfaces which effect
an equalization of the air speed over all the trays.
Although drying in this apparatus takes relatively much time and labour, it is
easy to handle and for that reason suitable for medium-size factories producing
limited quantities of flour.
Drum driers
Probably the simplest arrangement for the continuous drying of flour is a
horizontal or inclined revolving drum, heated from the outside, into which the moist
flour is fed at one end. During transport inside the drum, which may be accomplished
by various mechanical means, the product gives off its moisture to a stream of
ventilating air (Fig. 22). In applying direct fire or steam the usual precautions against
overheating have to be taken.
Bell driers
These represent an efficient form of continuous drier, combining a high
capacity with a simple construction, which does not necessitate supervision by
skilled workers. Here the starch is carried along on a series of conveyor belts, one on
top of the other, in a stream of hot air. Moist starch is shed onto the top belt and
conveyed over the whole length of the construction; at the end it drops on to the belt
below, which is driven in the opposite direction, and so on. With each drop from a
belt to the one below, the starch is turned over and ventilated. Heaters such as steam
pipes are fixed between the belts and effect a rapid evaporation, the water vapour
being removed by the upward draft.
Tunnel driers
The manufacture of a uniform product of definite moisture content is best
ensured with modern tunnel driers in which the moist starch is carried on a conveyor
belt through a tunnel divided into compartments forming drying zones. The
circulating air is kept at a definite temperature, and moisture content in each zone
is automatically controlled by conditioning devices. The flour is sucked up by
vacuum from a concentrated slurry on a revolving cloth sieve with a cake-scoring
device and a spring discharge. The starch cake, containing 40 percent water on the
wet basis, is discharged in small broken strips directly to the travelling bed of the
drier, where it encounters gradually changing drying conditions. The flour is
discharged at the other end of the tunnel with a moisture content of about 17
percent, in the form of very loose agglomerations which are easily crumbled and
bolted. The drier, 2.5 m wide and 10 m long and divided into four zones, has a
capacity of 15 tons of dry flour per 24 hours.
Pneumatic driers
Another type of drier is the pneumatic flash drier. The starch cake is led from
the basket centrifuge by a warm conveyor to a pneumatic drier, where the final
moisture content is reduced to 10-13 percent. Drying is effected by hot air produced
by a set of oil burners working on the atomized burning principle and compressed
air. The required quantities of fresh air are sucked into the hot air generator through
an air filter and heated to about 150C. During the drying process the starch is
pneumatically conveyed from the bottom to the top of the drier and then deflected
downward.

Starch particles which are not quite dry are returned to the drying unit located
at the bottom, while the dry starch is separated in the cyclone from the conveying air
and led through a rotary pocket seal into a starch powder sifter.
FINISHING AND PACKAGING
Bolting
Crude dry cassava flour consists for the greater part of hard lumps of starch.
As it is useless for most purposes in this form, it has to be subjected to a pulverizing
process followed by dry-screening. The latter operations are often referred to as
bolting.
As a bolting installation is remunerative only where production is relatively
high, smaller enterprises do not as a rule install their own equipment for the purpose.
Often, however, a number of small mills deliver their crude flour to a central bolting
factory, which at the same time may function as a trading concern for the finished
product. In these central installations bolting is carried out as in medium-size and
larger cassava factories, while at the same time definite "brands" are composed by
mixing.
At the medium production levels it pays to have simple bolting machines, in
which the flour is crushed between rolls. The apparatus, if necessary, can be driven
by hand.
Roller bolting the crude flour is shed into a hopper placed above a pair of
rollers turning in opposite directions at the same speed. The agglomerations of starch
are broken up by the action of the rollers, but fibre and other tough particles are left
intact. The crushed flour is subsequently received in a conical rotary screen of the
same construction used for wet-screening and described previously. Here the small
lumps which have escaped crushing, fibre and other foreign particles are separated
from the starch by a screening gauze 100 to 200 mesh/inch. The dry pulp discharged
is fed back into the hopper once more. The rolls and the revolving screen are coupled
to the same motor, which in an emergency may be replaced by a hand-driven crank.
Roller bolting is a relatively slow process and has therefore been superseded
by disintegrator bolting. Recently, however, the particular advantage of the roller
process - its relatively mild crushing action - has been combined with a greater speed
of working in new machinery with a system of grooved rollers.
Bolting by disintegrators at present most medium and all larger factories are
equipped with beater disintegrators for the bolting process. In the disintegration
action not only the starch lumps hut also here and other foreign material are
pulverized and forced through screen plates of 100 mesh/inch or finer as desired. If
the starting material was of questionable purity the resulting flour may contain
appreciable amounts of non-starch material, which cannot be separated easily. The
power consumption of these disintegrators is between 10 and 20 HP depending on
the amount of flour that needs to be disintegrated per hour: the working speed is
some 1200 rev/min
The arrangement of the equipment is similar to that for roller bolting. As much
starch is strewn during the operation the disintegrator and rotating screen are
housed in wooden chambers provided with windows for the discharge of the bolted
flour which can be closed by shutters or a thick cloth when in operation.
Storing and packaging
The finished starch should he stored in a dry place, preferably on a board floor
or in bins, where it can he mixed in order to obtain a uniform lot.

Before storing, the starch is sifted to assure lump-free uniform particles. It is

usually packaged in gunny sacks for shipment, but multiwall paper bags are
becoming more popular. A modern sifting and bagging machine is shown in Figure
23.
Extraction of starch from dried cassava roots
A limited quantity of the cassava imported into Europe in the form of chips
and dried sliced roots is manufactured into starch. The dried roots are cleaned,
washed and grated and the starch is separated by cylindrical sieves; however, this
practice is costly and the starch produced is of inferior quality for the following
reasons:
a) The brown skin, which contains chlorophyll and coagulated proteinous
substances, adheres strongly to the ligneous tissues. While it is easy to remove
this skin from the fresh roots, it is very difficult to remove it from the dried
roots and, therefore, the starch of dried roots is always dark.
b) The nitrogenous substances are found in a colloidal state enveloping the
starch granules in the pulp slurry of the fresh roots. It is easier to separate
these nitrogenous particles in the pulp slurry of fresh roots than in dried roots.

3. Baked tapioca products

The baked products for which cassava flour is the basic ingredient are known
commercially as tapiocas or tapioca fancies. In Malaysia and some other areas these
products are commonly known in the industry as sago products. The term probably
originated with the Chinese production of sago-palm starch products. The
manufacture of tapioca fancies is a logical follow-up of the production of the flour
itself in the countries of origin. Separation of the processing of the flour and of the
derivatives would be illogical. Many medium-size and larger factories are also
equipped for the manufacture of such baked products as flakes, seeds, pearls, and
grist.
These products are made from partly gelatinized cassava starch obtained by
heat treatment of the moist flour in shallow pans. When heated, the wet granules
gelatinize, burst, and stick together. The mass is stirred to prevent scorching. They
are manufactured in the form of irregular lumps called flakes or of perfectly round
beads 16 mm in diameter known as seeds and pearls (Figs. 24-26). The grist is a
finer-grained product obtained by milling gelatinized lumps, and siftings and dust
are residual products of the manufacture of seeds and pearls.
Preparation of wet flour
The raw material for baked products is the flour scooped up from
sedimentation tanks or tables after the supernatant, or excess water, has been
drained and the "yellow" flour scraped off. Clearly the use of moist starch, an
intermediate stage in the processing of the Dour, is economically advantageous.
Only very white first-quality flour can be used in the manufacture. To obtain
this, sulphurous acid is often added in the first sedimentation. This chemical should,
however, be washed out as completely as possible by a second sedimentation in clean
water; any traces of the acid left in the flour tend to spoil the quality of the end
product. It is strongly advised not to use active chlorine preparations in this case, as
they influence the agglomeration of the starch into pearls and other forms in an
unfavourable way.
The cake of moist flour, containing about 45 percent water, is broken up by a
small mill, spades or pressing it through frames strung with steel wire spaced about
10-20 cm apart, after which the lumps are rubbed through a screen of about 20
mesh/inch to produce a coarse-grained moist flour.
At this stage the flour is ready only for gelatinization and the production of
flakes; to prepare pearls and seeds, the small aggregates of moist starch should be
subjected to a process of building up and consolidation which gives them the size
and cohesive strength desired for the further treatment. The operation is known by
the Indonesian name as the gangsor method. A portion of the moist starch is put
into a long cylindrical bag of twill cloth which is held at each end by one man.
Together with a rhythmical strong jerking movement, they throw the mass of starch
lumps from one end of the hag to the other (Fig. 27). After a few minutes of this
treatment the irregular lumps have grown into beads of varying size and have gained
in firmness. Another portion of the moist flour is added and the gangsoring is
continued the operation being repeated until the heads have grown more or less to
the desired size. Depending on the skill of the worker the size of the starch balls is
fairly uniform. Curiously enough, the knack of gangsoring is achieved only by a
fraction of all workers, so the operation should be classified as skilled labour.
In Malaysia the flour is fed into open, cylindrical rotating pans about 0.9 m in
diameter and 1.2 m deep (Figs. 28, 29). During rotation the starch grains are forced

to adhere together in the form of small particles or beads. The resulting product
depends on the speed and the length of time of rotation.
After gangsoring, beads of the right size are sorted out by screening between
plates with circular holes corresponding to the required dimensions (Fig. 30).
Gelatinization
In gelatinizing, starch undergoes a radical alteration in molecular
arrangement, with a concomitant change in properties. From a practically insoluble
product of semi crystalline structure it becomes an amorphous substance, miscible
with water in any proportions at sufficiently high temperatures, giving viscous
solutions which after cooling set to a semisolid elastic mass: a jelly, or gel.
This process may be brought about by the action of chemicals or by heating
in an aqueous medium; only the latter case is of interest here. The onset of
gelatinization is characterized by a loss of granular, structure which also promotes
swelling; both processes can easily be followed under a microscope. With cassava
starch, gelatinization sets in at about 60C, and the process is completed at about
80C. The point of gelatinization depends to a certain extent on granule size, the
smaller granules being more resistant to swelling.
In the manufacture of baked products, the treatment is kept at a moderate
temperature so as to cause gelatinization only in the surface layer of the lumps of
moist starch. The product obtained therefore consists of agglomerations of practically
raw starch enclosed by a thin layer of the tough and coherent gelatinized form.
For flakes, gelatinization is performed in shallow pans about 60-90 cm in
diameter and 20-25 cm deep, having the profile of spherical segments, which are
placed in holes on a brick oven and heated on a moderate fire. In order to prevent
burning the starch, and perhaps also as an aid in achieving an end product of the
desired lustre, the pans are wiped beforehand with a towel soaked in an edible oil or
fat. Shorea (tenkawang fat) or Bassia (illipe fat), having properties approaching those
of cocoa butter, seem to be preferable for the purpose, but groundout oil is used as
well. Furthermore, it is necessary to rake the mass continuously with large forks,
both to prevent burning and to ensure uniform gelatinization. From time to time a
sample of the flakes is tested for toughness until proper consistency is attained.
The hand-baking process can also be applied in the manufacture of pearls
and seeds, but rather irregularly shaped beads are obtained, inferior in colour and
in other qualities.
Better mechanical methods for obtaining a first-rate product have long been
known. In one of these, gelatinization is performed with the direct application of
steam. The starch beads are poured onto plates in a rather thick layer, the plates
forming a conveyor belt which is slowly drawn through a tunnel charged with steam.
In this way, uniform gelatinization is ensured.
A device widely used in Indonesia (Java), which combines the advantages of
several other methods, consists of a hollow cylinder revolving on rollers and driven
by motor via a suitable transmission, all resting on a foundation which at the same
time serves as a hearth with fire-holes. Flanges on the rollers hold the revolving
drum, which is inclined at an angle of about 10. The raw beads are poured into a
gutter at the higher end of the drum at such a rate that they spread into a single
layer by the time they reach the hotter parts of the inner surface of the drum. The
width of this flow of beads need not exceed 15 cm if the drum has a diameter of 80
cm and revolves at 8-10 rotations per minute. A suitable length for the drum is 4 m.
In rolling down, each bead covers the same long, screw-shaped path across the inner

drum surface, and in the hotter regions a gradual gelatinization sets in, the rotation
of the drum preventing overheating. By the rolling movement, moreover, the surface
of each bead is uniformly gelatinized and at the same time becomes perfectly
spherical in form.
Drying
The gelatinization process in the hand-worked flakes changes the moisture
content of the product by no more than a few percent, and the same applies to the
steam-treated pearls and seeds. In the drum described above, drying sets in parallel
with the gelatinization and may be promoted by ventilating the drum, but the removal
of water here is also incomplete.
Thus, in general, a final drying after gelatinization is necessary in order to
bring down the moisture content to the desired level of about 12 percent. Drying in
this case is best accomplished in chamber driers of the circulating type. For instance,
in a chamber drier for pearls and seeds the initial temperature should not exceed
40"C lest further gelatinization and bursting of the beads set in. Toward the end of
the treatment the temperature may be raised to 60-70C. With efficient exhausters,
drying may be completed in 1 1/2-2 hours. Normally, from 16 tons of moist starch,
10 tons of the dried product are obtained.

4. Cassava products for animal feeding

Cassava products have long been used for animal feeding. Large quantities of
cassava roots and cassava waste are utilized in the cassava-producing countries for
this purpose. Imports of dried cassava roots and meal into European markets for the
supply of the compound feed industry are also increasing.
Chips
This is the most common form in which dried cassava roots are marketed and
most exporting countries produce them. The chips are dried irregular slices of roots
which vary in size but should not exceed 5 cm in length, so that they can be stored
in silos. They are produced extensively in Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and some
parts of Africa.
PROCESSING CASSAVA CHIPS
The present method of processing chips in Thailand, Malaysia and some other
countries is very simple, consisting in mechanically slicing the cassava roots and
then sun drying the slices. The recovery rate of chips from roots is about 20-40
percent. However, the products are considered inferior in quality by some qualityconscious feedstuff manufacturers, although many others consider them
satisfactory.
Preparation of the roots
When the roots are not sorted, peeled and washed, the chips are usually
brown in colour and have a high content of fibre sand and foreign objects as well as
hydrocyanic acid. Trimming, peeling and washing the roots in a similar manner as
for the processing of cassava flour are recommended in order to produce white chips
of superior quality.
Slicing or shredding
The roots are shredded in a special machine, which is usually made locally.
The machine consists of a rotating notched cutting disk or knife blades mounted on
a wooden frame equipped with a hopper as shown in Figure 31. The cassava roots
are cut into thin slices and pieces as they pass through the machine.
Drying
Sun drying is used mostly where the sliced roots are spread out on drying
areas, or concrete floors of various dimensions. Experiments in Madagascar showed
that the concentration of chips during drying should not exceed 10-15 kg/m2, the
required drying area space being about 250 m2 for each ton per day of dried roots
produced.
To produce good quality chips the roots must be sliced and dried as quickly
as possible after harvest. The chips should be turned periodically in the drying
period, usually two or three sunny days, until the moisture content reaches 1315
percent. The chips are considered dry when they are easily broken but too hard to
be crumbled by hand. The thickness of the slices also has an effect on the quality of
chips. Thick slices may appear dry on the surface when their internal moisture
content is still high.
When rain threatens during the drying process, the chips are collected by
hand or by a tractor into piles under a small roof. Interrupted sun drying affects the
quality of the finished chips and pellets. When the semidried chips are wet again by
rain, they become soggy and upon completion of drying lose their firm texture. In

rainy regions, where continuous sun drying is difficult, some form of artificial heat
drying is required.

Broken roots
Similar to chips in appearance, but generally thicker and longer, they are often
12-15 cm long and can jam the mechanism of handling equipment. They are
produced mainly in Africa where local processors prefer to produce longer roots
because of the domestic demand mainly for products suitable for human
consumption, as cassava is part of the staple diet. Once processed into chips the
product becomes inedible, and the producer wants to conserve the local market.
Pellets
The pellets are obtained from dried and broken roots by grinding and
hardening into a cylindrical shape. The cylinders are about 2-3 cm long and about
0.4-0.8 cm in diameter and are uniform in appearance and texture.
The production of pelleted chips has recently been increasing as they meet a
ready demand on the European markets. They have the following advantages over
chips: quality is more uniform; they occupy 25-30 percent less space than chips,
thus reducing the cost of transport and storage; handling charges for loading and
unloading are also cheaper; they usually reach their destination sound and
undamaged, while a great part of a cargo of sliced chips is damaged in long-distance
shipment because of sweating and heating.
Pellets are produced by feeding dried chips into the pelleting machine, after
which they are screened and bagged for export. The powdered chips which fall down
during pelleting are re-pressed into pellets and the process is repeated. There is
usually about 2-3 percent loss of weight during the process.
Meal
This product is the powdered residue of the chips and roots after processing
to extract edible starch. It is generally inferior in quality to chips, pellets and broken
roots, has a lower starch content and usually contains more sand. The use of cassava
meal in the European Economic Community has declined with a shift to the other
cassava products during the last few years. However, there will remain some demand
for this product, especially by small-scale farmers who produce their own feedstuffs.
Since it does not require grinding and thus can be readily mixed with other
ingredients.
Residual pulp
During the processing of cassava flour, the residual pulp which is separated
from the starch in the screening process is used as an animal feed. It is usually
utilized wet (75-80 percent moisture content) in the neighbourhood of the processing
factory but is sometimes sun dried before it is sold. This product is considered a byproduct of the cassava starch industry and represents about 10 percent by weight of
the cassava roots.
The approximate analysis of this product (dry matter) is as follows:
Protein
Starch
Fat
Ash
Fibre
TOTAL

Percent
5.3
56.0
0.1
2.7
35.9
100.0

5. Cassava starch factories

The profitability of any cassava factory depends primarily on the following
conditions:
a) Year-round availability of cassava roots of the desired quality in sufficient
quantity;
b) Presence of abundant water with the needed qualities;
c) Reliable power supply;
d) Transportation facilities both for the roots and the end products;
e) Availability of capital and labour.
Small and medium-size factories are more frequently found in rural regions
with a rather dense agrarian population, numerous streams, and at least one
highway to a not too distant commercial centre.
Power
In the small and medium-size factories the only processes consuming a
considerable amount of energy are rasping of the roots and, where a bolting
installation is present, crushing of the crude dry flour. At the lowest production levels
the manufacture can, therefore, be effected entirely by hand; the larger rural mills,
however, have recourse to running water as the chief source of power
A rasper and eventually a rotating screen can be driven by a simple
waterwheel about 1m in diameter, constructed of hardwood and revolving on an iron
shaft. The mill is set up preferably near a riverside or brook. At some point upstream,
water is led off into a channel of suitable size. The amount of water running in the
channel before reaching the waterwheel is regulated by the operation of lock gates.
Above a certain production level, depending on various factors, the energy
consumed by the rasper, rotating screen, disintegrators (in bolting installations) and
accessory equipment (such as pumps) is such that it is more advantageous to employ
a diesel engine or an electric motor. In modern factories located near cities, power
for industrial purposes can usually be purchased from the local power station at
reduced rates. In the factory, a small stand-by engine generator is recommended for
use in the event of power failure.
Water
Apart from its use as a source of power, the availability of ample pure water
is of the utmost importance in processing cassava flour. During the greater part of
the process, the starch granules are in contact with water which, besides the soluble
constituents of the roots, contains all the substances originating from the water
added in wet-screening of the pulp and in sedimentation. The deleterious effect of
crude suspended matter in the water used (turbidity from clay, etc.) will be obvious.
Moreover, starch in its natural state acts as a moderately strong absorbent of
electrolytes and colloidal matter in solution. As a result, any ions in the water, even
if present in small concentrations, are apt to be accumulated in the granules, thus
influencing the outward appearance and the physicochemical properties of the flour.
Iron ions have a particularly bad effect in this respect because, apart from
being strongly adsorbed, they tend to fix hydrocyanic acid, a normal component of
cassava, in the form of dark-coloured compounds. In larger factories specializing in
the production of first-rate flours, therefore, even the use of iron in piping and other
equipment should be avoided where contact with the flour milk is possible.
Smaller factories, as a rule, will resort to spring water for processing, on
account of its greater purity as compared with river water. Not infrequently, pure

water is obtained from springs in the neighbourhood of rivers or artesian wells, so

that both kinds of water can be used together. River water, crude or cleared in a
sedimentation tank, is used for washing the peeled roots; and spring water or
artesian water, which needs little filtration, is used in contact with the flour in
processing. If only river water is available, it may be used after sufficient purification.
The daily consumption of water for processing required by small rural mills is
no more than a few cubic metres. A simple pit in which river water is left standing
may suffice to obtain pure water.
An improved system of water purification is illustrated in Figures 32 and 33.
River water enters one of the two cement cisterns communicating at the base. The
water in the second tank rises slowly through a bed of filtering material - for instance,
some sprigs covered with a layer of pebbles. A very efficient filtering bed is obtained
from a material available in most tropical regions - the fibre from the leaf-sheath of
the sugar palm (Arenga saccharifera), in Java called injuk or indjuk. On account of
its peculiar texture this material is not easily clogged and retains most suspended
matter. However, in filtering, ordinary sand may serve equally well.

WATER PURIFICATION INSTALLATION FOR CASSAVA PROCESSING (Plan)

WATER PURIFICATION INSTALLATION FOR CASSAVA PROCESSING Vertical cross

section.
A small-scale factory using sedimentation tanks for its flour milk consumes
about 1.5 m3 of water for 100 kg of fresh roots; hence, the tank should be able to
provide the necessary water for a production level of about 2 tons of dry flour per
day.
Purification may be aided by chemical means - for example, by the addition of
a little aluminium sulphate (alum) - but this is not a widespread practice. A
particularly useful and economical aid for cleansing the process water is the
cultivation of certain floating water-plants in the purification tanks, principally the
following tropical species: Eichornia crassipes, Utricularia spp., Salvinia auriculata
and S. cacculata. Suspended clay and other material collect on the hairy roots of
these plants. Application is not restricted to small-scale factories; large factories
often have their vast purification tanks covered with this kind of vegetation. The ion
exchange process is applied in some modern factories to reduce the mineral content
of water used for the purification of starch as well as for steam boilers.
A suitable outlet must exist also for the resulting waste water of the factory.
Very often this waste water is not allowed to drain off into the public sewage system
without purification.
Types of factories
Cassava processing can perhaps best be outlined in the form of the layouts of
or other data on existing factories belonging to each of the three production levels
(small, medium, and large) which have been taken as a basis for classification.
LAYOUT OF A SMALL MILL
In such mills the work is performed entirely with simple hand-driven tools or
at the most a waterwheel as a source of power. These factories, as a rule, do not
produce more than 200 kg of crude, unbolted flour a day; if run by a family, the daily
production is generally not more than 100-120 kg.
A small factory with a daily output of about 200 kg of dry flour functions as
follows. Water is drawn off from a brook, dammed up for the purpose, by the channel
leading to a waterwheel. The rotation of the wheel is transmitted via the flywheel and

a belt to the rasper which is mounted in the rasping table with seating bench. The
roots are peeled and dumped into the basin, where they are washed with clean water
from a feed pipe, after which they are transferred to the rasper. The pulp obtained
by rasping is transferred to the washing basins, where it is washed thoroughly with
spring water or purified river water. The flour milk runs into the settling tanks.
After settling, the fruit liquor is let off through a drain, joining the wash water
from the roots and the water from the channel on its way to the river. The moist flour
is conveniently dried near the factory on racks in the open, and the packing of the
crude dry flour and other related work are performed in a small shed. The waste pulp
is worked up in factories like this one; it is dried in the sun and sold to a bolting
factory together with the crude flour.
LAYOUT OF A MEDIUM-SIZE FACTORY
In these factories the installation of an electromotor or diesel engine of about
20HP raises the production capacity to a level of about 5 tons a day, principally on
account of more efficient rasping. The other operations also change somewhat in
character as compared with the small-mill methods, but they are the same in
principle and little skilled labour is needed. The power supply mentioned above is
sufficient to drive one mechanical rasper. In many instances, however, the factory
includes a bolting installation, which, in general, is driven alternately with the
rasper, and the factory produces an assortment of finished flours: in this case a
somewhat larger power supply (at least 25HP) is necessary. Factories of this kind are
very suitable for rural areas where unskilled labour is comparatively cheap but
technical equipment and skill are difficult to procure.
Both small mills and medium-size factories in general, have to buy their roots
from landowners in their neighbourhood. On account of many economic and social
factors the supply often lacks stability and continuity. Consequently, the possibility
of production planning is slight, and this is perhaps the most important factor
limiting the size and output of such factories. In areas where farmers or farmer
organizations have more advanced ideas, where they are commercially minded and
combine in rural industrial enterprises to process their own agricultural product, the
supply of roots can be organized to the great economic benefit of all concerned.
Figures 34 and 35 show the main elements of a typical medium-size factory
with a capacity of 2-3 tons of dry flour per day. The arrangement and dimensions,
given m centimetres, are those recommended by an expert with long practical
experience. Figure 34 shows vertical sections of the arrangement through the axis of
the rotating screen (above) and perpendicular to this axis (below). The peeled roots
are stored in basin A, washed in basin B, and transferred from the latter basin to the
rasper (C), mounted on a rasping table (L in Fig. 35). A 20-hp diesel engine (H)
coupled to the pump (G), which supplies water from the well (F), drives both the
rasper (at 800 rev/min) and the rotating screen (at 120 rev/min) via the transmission
gear (1). The flour milk passes from the rotating screen (D) to the flour table (E),
which has a slope of about 1 percent.

FIGURE 34. MAIN ELEMENTS OF A TYPICAL MEDIUM-SIZE CASSAVA-PROCESSING FACTORY (Vertical sections).

FIGURE 35. MAIN ELEMENTS OF A TYPICAL MEDIUM-SIZE CASSAVA-PROCESSING FACTORY (Horizontal sections).

LARGE OR ESTATE FACTORIES

By starting with a sufficiently large investment of capital, it is possible to
overcome the limitations mentioned above and reach at once production of the order
of 40 tons of dry flour a day. Manufacture at this level presupposes that a continuous
sale is secured with the dextrin industry, one of the industries using cassava starch.
Supplying cassava for specific industrial purposes, however, in turn places definite
demands on the flour mills, which can be summed up as the demand for a regular
supply of an assortment of flour of specific and constant quality. Clearly, this
demand will be met only when the factory can rely on adequate raw material - roots
- from its own extensive plantations where a selected strain of cassava is grown. On
this level only, appropriate machinery for purification and more elaborate techniques
are coming into their own, to save labour, minimize losses, and so process more
economically.
Division into three classes of factories is, of course, arbitrary: medium-size
factories may have fairly modern machinery, such as centrifuges for the preliminary
drying of the flour, whereas a much larger factory may be limited to rather out-ofdate methods of drying. Still, as a rule, each operation in processing the flour is
carried out in a form characteristic of the particular class in the above classification
of factories.
The processing operations in different types of factories are illustrated in the
following flow sheets and diagrams. Figure 36 shows an example of the operations
used in a small to medium-size cassava starch factory in Malaysia. The equipment
and methods of manufacture are mostly old-fashioned. Figure 37 shows an example
of the processing operations in a medium- to large-size factory in Thailand. Most of
the equipment is modern and the production is mostly prepared for export. Figure
38 shows a diagram of the operations of a large factory with modern equipment
proposed for Nigeria

FIGURE 36. Flow diagram of operations in an old-fashioned small to medium-size processing factory.

FIGURE 37. Flow diagram of operations in a modern medium to farce processing factory.

FIGURE 38. Flow diagram of operations proposed for a large modern processing factory.

Establishment of a cassava starch factory

The following economic study is for the establishment of a modern cassava
starch factory with a capacity of 24 tons of dry starch per day. The study includes
the estimated required investment and working capital for the establishment and the
operation of the factory as well as the estimated operating costs and the expected
profitability of the project (see Tables 6-9).
The factory is supposed to be established in a tropical region where all basic
industrial requirements such as water, power, transportation facilities and raw
materials are available.
The total investment in such a factory is estimated at $736 340 and the
working capital is estimated at $142 000 for the operation of the factory for a period
of three months. The project is expected to give annual profits of $108970, which is
equivalent to 14.8 percent of the estimated invested capital.
TABLE 6. - ESTIMATED TOTAL CAPITAL INVESTMENT FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF
A CASSAVA STARCH FACTORY (24 TONS PER DAY)

Land (5 acres; 2 ha)

Buildings
Site preparation
Buildings for processing, storage, office, laboratory, garage, repair shop
Corrugated steel sheet construction for gates and fence around plant
Process equipment
Cost of equipment (see Appendix 5)
Installation (20 percent of cost of equipment)
Engineering and design (10 percent of total cost)
Start-up expenses
Contingency (10 percent of total cost)
Total plant investment

U.S.
dollars
1,000
5,000
90,000
5,000
1,00,000
4,10,000
84,000
59,400
15,000
5,68,400
66,940
7,36,340

The factory is supposed to be supplied with modern equipment known to

have the highest production efficiency. Together with the use of suitable cassava
varieties, the industrial yield of starch extraction exceeds 24 percent. In this study,
however, a moderate rate of extraction of 23 percent is used.
The cost estimates for equipment and other materials are based on previous
studies (e.g.: Grace, Wabby & Eriksen, 1970. Little, 1964) and on quotes from some
equipment suppliers. The cost of fresh cassava roots at $9.35 per ton represents
the average price in Malaysia in 1969. The estimated wages are based on the
highest levels paid in some tropical countries and include all prerequisites, such as
annual leave, and medical and social contingencies.

Unskilled labour
Semiskilled labour
Skilled labour
Foremen

U.S. dollars
per year
400
500
1000
1500

TABLE 7. - ESTIMATED REQUIREMENTS OF LABOUR, SALARIES AND WAGES * FOR A

CASSAVA STARCH FACTORY (24 TONS PER DAY)

Management
Manager
Assistant manager
Mechanical superintendent
Technical supervisor
Indirect labour
Agent for roots supply
Office clerks
Guards (semiskilled labour)
Unskilled workers for grounds
Direct labour
Processing technician
Quality-control technician
Foremen for processing shifts
Foremen for maintenance and transport
Skilled workers for processing operations
Skilled workers (drivers, mechanical and
electrical maintenance)
Unskilled workers for processing
Unskilled workers for maintenance and
transportation

Cost per
year
12000
8000
6000
6000
32000

1
1
1
1
4

12000
8000
6000
6000

1
4
3
2
10

2400
1000
600
400

2400
4000
1800
800
9000

1
1
3
2
21

4800
4800
1500
1500
1000

4800
4800
4500
3000
21000

11

1000

11000

13

400

5200

11

400

4400

63

58700
99700

Total
*Includes fringe benefits.

TABLE 8. - ESTIMATED OPERATING COST AND WORKING CAPITAL FOR THE

PRODUCTION OF CASSAVA STARCH (24 TONS PER DAY)
U.S. dollars
Raw materials
Fresh cassava roots @ $9.35 per ton (31 300 tons per year)

292650

Operating supplies and utilities

Fuel and diesel oils

20000

Power at $3/kWh

25000

Packaging materials at $40/100-kg bags

28800

Maintenance supplies (3 percent of equipment cost)

12300

General supplies
89100
Operating labour
Salaries and wages including all benefits

99700

Sales expense ($2 per ton)

14400

Local taxes and insurance (1 percent of plant investment)

7400

Depreciation (10 percent on equipment and 2 percent on buildings)

64600

Total cost per year

567850

Estimated working capital (3 months' operating cost at full capacity)

142000

TABLE 9. - ESTIMATED PROFITABILITY OF A CASSAVA STARCH FACTORY (24

TONS PER DAY)

Total estimated sales of products

Cassava starch @ $78 per ton (7200 tons per year)
Waste or refuse (local markets) at $35 per ton
Total estimated operating cost

U.S. dollars
5,61,600
1,15,500
6,77,100
-5,67,850
1,09,250
Percent

Net estimated annual profits

Profits per invested capital
Profits per operating cost
Profits per working capital

14.8
19.2
76.8

The sales price of cassava starch and refuse is estimated at $78 per ton for
starch (f.o.b. price for export) and $35 per ton for refuse, as was reported in 1967 in
Thailand. Refuse is extensively used, in the dry or wet state, as animal feed.
OPERATIONAL FIGURES
The factory is designed to operate continuously, three shifts per 24 hours, for
300 days per year. The total capacity is 24 tons per day or 7 200 tons per year of
high-grade cassava starch with a moisture content of 10-12 percent.
Total fresh roofs required per year
Total area required for cassava
cultivation

31300 tons
3100 acres ( 1255 ha)

Power consumption per year

838 800 kWh ( 116.5 kWh per ton of

starch)

Water consumption per year

496800 m3 (69 m3 per ton of starch)

Diesel oil for the trucks

approx. 110 m3 (24000 gal)

Fuel oil for steam generator

approx. 320 m3 (70000 gal)

6. Utilization of cassava products

Cassava in the human diet
Cassava is sometimes classified as a crop for developing countries and for
consumption only by rural people, whereas the large crop of cassava grown
annually in the tropics is actually consumed in all its forms at nearly all income
levels. Originally the cassava tuber was a main food crop only in South America.
Nowadays, however, it is grown as a substitute for rice or alternately with rice on
extensive acreages in regions where, for centuries, rice has been the sole food crop.
In many tropical countries cassava as the principal source of carbohydrates
occupies much the same position in the diet as potatoes in parts of the temperate
zones. The cassava tuber is not a balanced food, consisting as it does largely of
starch (Table 10); nonetheless, it is the most remunerative of crop plants in the hot
climates, yielding perhaps more starch per hectare than any other cultivated crop
with a minimum of labour.
During the Second World War, cassava assumed tremendous importance as
a famine crop in many parts of the world, especially when rice supplies were cut
off. Leaves and lender shoots are used in many tropical areas as a cooked vegetable
or in sauces, as they are rich in vitamins and have a high protein count.
MAIN CONSTITUENTS AND NUTRITIONAL VALUE
A comparison of the chemical composition of cassava tubers and some
products derived from it (gaplek and tapioca flour) with that of potatoes and rice, as
presented in Table 10, may convey an impression of the relative nutritional value of
cassava. (It should be borne in mind that only the peeled root is edible.)
As cassava is inferior in protein and fat content to both rice and potatoes,
animal protein or products such as soybeans are often used to balance the diet in
cassava-consuming lands.
TABLE 10. - NUTRIENTS IN CASSAVA ROOTS COMPARED WITH OTHER FOOD
PRODUCTS
Percent
Cassava tubers (peeled)
Gaplek
Tapioca flour
Potatoes
Potato flour
Husked rice

Calories
/100g
127
355
307
89
331
347

Protein

Fat

0.8-1.0
1.5
0.5-0.7
2.1

0.2-0.5
1.0
0.2
0.1
0.3
2.5

8.0

Carbohydrate
32
85
85
20
82
73

Ash
0.3-0.5
0.8
0.3
1.0
0.3
1.5

Moisture
65
15
15
77
15
15

Fibre
0.8
0.5
0.7
0.4
0.7- 1.0

Cassava also compares rather unfavourably in vitamin content with other food
products, as is shown in Table 11.
Besides starch, the cassava tuber contains some soluble carbohydrates, i.e.,
glucose and sugar, which can be inverted. These convey a pleasant sweet taste to the
tubers of the non-poisonous strains. The amount in the peeled root is 1-3 percent of
total dry matter only, but it rises notably at the age of 16-18 months when the starch
content is beginning to decline. The soluble carbohydrate content of the peel is larger
- 5-10 percent of the dry matter - and it eventually makes up one fifth of the total
carbohydrate content.

TABLE 11. - VITAMINS IN CASSAVA ROOTS COMPARED WITH OTHER FOOD

PRODUCTS

Cassava tubers (peeled)

Gaplek
Tapioca flour
Potatoes
Potato flour
Husked rice

Vitamin A
Vitamin B
I.U./100 g
10
10
40

30-80

Vitamin C
mg/100 g
20

13- 15

100-150

These soluble carbohydrates naturally are lost in processing the tubers for
starch; they may play an important role, however, in the preparation of fermented
food products from cassava.
The nutritive deficiencies of cassava need not be a cause for concern when it
is consumed with other supplementary foods. However, the so-called "cassava
problem" as related to the "kwashiokor disease" means that persons with low
incomes are prone to consume it in excessive quantities because it supplies sufficient
calories and gives a feeling of satiety in their diet; therefore, many suffer from a
deficiency of protein and/or of vitamins.
Although the cassava tuber may be consumed in the raw state, it usually
needs preparing in order to become palatable and digestible and, above all, to
eliminate the poisonous prussic acid. This may be accomplished in several ways,
thus obtaining various products which are traditional food items in the areas where
cassava has long been well known. Some of these have to be consumed immediately;
others may be kept for a considerable time and constitute a valuable food reserve.
RAW AND COOKED CASSAVA FOR IMMEDIATE CONSUMPTION
In the raw state the roots of the sweet varieties are used as a forage without
being peeled. In the Philippines their suitability in hog feeding has been amply
demonstrated in experiments.
The fresh, peeled root of the same varieties is suitable for human
consumption, provided it is no more than a few months old, but it is seldom used as
such. It cannot be kept for more than a day. The roots of the sweetest varieties are
sometimes eaten raw as a between-meals snack or thirst quencher.
With simple cooking the root becomes equivalent to potatoes, though its taste
is considered "heavier." Prussic acid in the fresh root is destroyed by slowly cooking
the sliced roots, starting with ample cold water so that gradual heating ensures
hydrolysis of the toxic principle. If the roots are submitted to fierce heat, thereby
destroying enzyme action, a possibility of the retention of bound prussic acid exists,
which in the bitter varieties may be dangerous. With the same reservation, steaming
and especially frying in oil are recommended, as both these methods produce
palatable foods.
In Indonesia, roots are often wrapped in leaves after covering them with a
yeast preparation; fermentation for 24 hours suffices to produce a soft and slightly
alcoholic side-dish.
Many food dishes using cassava, boiled or baked, as the basic ingredient to
which is added meat, fish, soybean cake, shrimps or other protein source are

prepared in various countries (e.g.: Krubub, Ketela and fish or prawn crackers in the
Far East; Sancochado, Escabeche, Seco de Carnero, Sebiche and Pachananca in
South America).
CONSERVED CASSAVA PRODUCTS
Gaplek
The simplest method of conservation consists of drying the sliced root in the
sun; in the tropics this takes two or three days. Once dry, gaplek is sufficiently
durable; during drying, however, it is particularly liable to mould, making it
unsuitable for human consumption. Before the Second World War, the milled
product (gaplek meal) was an important export from Indonesia to Europe for animal
fodder.
Gaplek meal finds some application in those starch-using industries where
the high content of moulds, fibre, and other constituents of the whole root can raise
no serious objection, as in textile finishing and the manufacture of alcohol. As it is
easy to maintain a large stock of gaplek, there would therefore be obvious advantages
in using it as a basic material for the production of pure cassava starch. In Indonesia
this use has presented no serious technical difficulties; however, it has never been
applied on an important scale.
Farinha and cassava bread (couac)
A somewhat more elaborate treatment of the root than is needed for the
production of gaplek leads to conservable food products which seem to be known
only in Latin America and play an important role in nutrition there. It is interesting
that this mode of preparation is usually combined with the traditional manufacture
of crude cassava flour at the domestic level.
The roots, cleaned superficially, are first peeled with a knife and then grated.
The most primitive grater, used by South American Indians, consists of a board upon
which a number of little flints are embedded in a thin layer of wax. Graters consisting
of a wooden board with wooden teeth are also in use. In somewhat more developed
areas this work is done with a rotating rasp, usually hand-driven, which does not
differ very much from the raspers in rural mills elsewhere.
When a sufficient amount of the rasped material has been collected, it is
packed in leaves and pressed under a heavy stone, sometimes with the aid of pole
leverage, or in a wooden screw-press. The traditional instrument in
Latin America for this purpose, however, is a basketwork cylinder known as
the tipiti, which is specially woven so that it can take both a long and thin as well as
a short and bulky form. In the latter form the basket is packed with fresh cassava
pulp and hung from the bough of a tree, the "sock" being pulled until it is long and
thin. This operation subjects the pulp to considerable pressure, thus extracting the
greater part of the possibly poisonous juice.
The pulp obtained may be worked in two ways. In the preparation of farinha
it is mixed for better quality with a little pulp which has been left to ferment for three
days. The whole is then pounded and rubbed through a sieve, producing a slightly
damp meal.
It is then heated, in the open air, in a pan on a flat oven with a top consisting
of granite slabs which guarantee even heat without burning. The pulp is turned
continuously with a wooden rake during 3 to 4 hours of baking, which produces a
granular, only slightly roasted product. If dry, farinha will keep indefinitely. It is an
excellent cereal, usually eaten like rice in combination with other foods, especially

meat and gravy, but it is also very useful as an emergency ration for travellers. It is
known as farinha de mandioca or farinha de mesa.
By heating the pulp more intensively, without stirring, until the mass is
slightly brown on one side, it sets into a solid slab. After baking on both sides, the
cakes are further dried in the sun, and in this state will keep indefinitely. This
cassava bread, or couac, is very hard, but it has an excellent flavour: it is usually
eaten after being dipped in gravy.
In rural factories producing farinha or couac, generally only part of the
pressed cake of cassava pulp is worked up to produce these products. The rest, in
portions, is washed out in a cloth above a wooden bowl, each portion being stirred
with successive amounts of water until most of the starch has been extracted. The
bowl containing the starch milk is put aside for settling. After some time the water is
decanted, and the starch spread in the sun on reed matting. In two days it is dry.
The flour obtained, of low to medium grade, is commonly used in Brazil for making
cakes.
In Brazil also, the peeled roots are cut into large chunks and dried. The dried
product is ground, sifted and the flour, known as farinha de raspa, is mixed with
wheat flour in the making of bread, macaroni, crackers, etc.
Gari
A popular food among the low-income groups in West Africa and Nigeria, it is
made by fermenting grated cassava tubers, semidextrinizing the mash by heat and
finally drying the product to a type of meal. In rural areas, the roots are peeled and
grated, and the pulp is put into a large cloth bag and set in the sun to drain and to
ferment. When the pulp is sufficiently dry, it is removed from the sack for final drying
on a low fire. Fermentation liberates the hydrocyanic acid at low pH and develops
the characteristic flavour of gari. It is carried out first by cassava bacteria
(Corynebacrerium manihot) that attack the starch with the production of lactic and
formic acids, and then by a fungus (Geotricium candida) that acts when the pH has
fallen to about 4.2, increasing the acidification and producing the characteristic
aroma. Hydrogen cyanide is liberated during fermentation through the spontaneous
hydrolysis of the cyanogenic glucoside of cassava at a low pH value. Many attempts
are being made in Nigeria to mechanize gari production under hygienic conditions as
well as to fortify this low-nutrition food with a protein additive.
Cassava rice (landang)
Similar in properties to these products is landang, or cassava rice, a popular
food in the Philippines. Landang retains much of the protein of the cassava root. It
is used in the Philippines as a substitute for rice or maize. It may be kept for six
months before being attacked by moulds.
This product is prepared by shredding the tubers and pressing the grated
mass in a cloth until most of the juice is squeezed out. By whirling the mass in a
winnowing basket, pellets are formed, their size determined by the speed of the
motion and the moisture content. Pellets of more or less uniform size are isolated by
sifting, steamed and then dried in the sun for some days. Alternatively, the tubers
are soaked in water in earthenware jars (contact with metal should be avoided) until
after five to seven days they begin to soften. Then they are macerated, the fibre is
removed by hand and the mass is air dried before being made into pellets in the way
just mentioned.
In India the production of a synthetic rice based on cassava has recently been
started.

Cassaripo or tucupay
Nowadays the squeezed juice obtained during the preparations mentioned
above is mostly thrown away. In South America, however, there is an ancient belief
that the juice contains many valuable nutrients.
The method used is to concentrate the juice by means of evaporation, and
then add various spices, including chilliest resulting sauce, which is very similar to
a soybean sauce, is called cassaripo or caslup in the West Indies and tucupay in
Brazil. If sufficiently concentrated, it may be kept indefinitely. In the cooking process
any content of prussic acid is destroyed; in fact, the bitter varieties of cassava give
the best cassaripo. In the West Indies, cassaripo (West Indian pepper pot) is used in
the conservation of fish or meat, in which case, however, it should be re-boiled daily.
It is to be regretted that this preparation is out of use now and even totally unknown
in countries which are in great need of nutritional condiments.
Pastes
Various forms of heavy cassava pastes are made by pounding the fresh or
boiled roots into a very smooth mass which is eaten as a vegetable loaf with an oily
sauce. Examples of these products are the fufu of Ghana, the dumbot of Liberia, the
atiek of Ivory Coast, the bami of other areas.
New vegetable cheese product
The relative absence in cassava of essential food components, particularly
protein, which makes it a cause of malnutrition, has led to the investigation of
various methods of adding protein and other nutrients to this basic food. The Tropical
Products Institute in London has undertaken studies of yeast culture on cassava and
a vegetable cheese is made by the nutritional enrichment of cassava through
fermentation. The process consists of fermentation of a cake of extruded cassava
dough to which mineral salts are added with a spore inoculum of a selected strain of
Rhizopus stolonifer. Crude protein levels have been raised from 0.1 to 4.0 percent,
and the vegetable cheese product is acceptable for direct use in cooking.
Cassava starch and its uses
The flour produced from the cassava plant, which on account of its low content
of non-carbohydrate constituents might well be called a starch, is known in world
trade as tapioca flour. It is used directly, made into a group of baked or gelatinized
products or manufactured into glucose, dextrins and other products.
Starchy foods have always been one of the staples of the human diet. They are
mostly consumed in starch-bearing plants or in foods to which commercial starch or
its derivatives have been added. The first starch was probably obtained from wheat
by the Egyptians for food and for binding fibres to make papyrus paper as early as
4000-3500 B.C.
Starches are now made in many countries from many different starchy raw
materials, such as wheat, barley, maize, rice, white or sweet potatoes, cassava, sago
palm and waxy xaize. Although they have similar chemical reactions and are usually
interchangeable, starches from different sources have different granular structures
which affect their physical properties.
Starch and starch products are used in many food and non-food industries
and as chemical raw materials for many other purposes, as in plastics and the
tanning of leather. Non-food use of starches - such as coating, sizings and adhesives
- accounts for about 75 percent of the output of the commercial starch industry.

In many industrial applications, there is competition not only among starches

from various sources but also between starches and many other products. Resin glue
has largely replaced starch in plywood because of its greater resistance to moisture;
resin finishes are used in the textile industry and natural gums compete with
starches in paper making. Nevertheless, the continuous development of new
products has enabled the starch industry to continue its expansion. The growth of
the starch industry in the future appears to be very promising, providing the quality
of products and the development of new products permit them to compete with the
various substitutes.
FOOD INDUSTRIES
The food industries are one of the largest consumers of starch and starch
products. In addition, large quantities of starch are sold in the form of products sold
in small packages for household cooking. Cassava, sago and other tropical starches
were extensively used for food prior to the Second World War, but their volume
declined owing to the disruption of world trade caused by the war. Attempts were
made to develop waxy maize as a replacement for normal non-cereal starches; but
the production of cassava starch has increased considerably in recent years.
Unmodified starch, modified starch and glucose are used in the food industry
for one or more of the following purposes:
(a) directly as cooked starch food, custard and other forms;
(b) Thickener using the paste properties of starch (soups, baby foods, sauces and
gravies, etc.);
(c) filler contributing to the solid content of soups, pills and tablets and other
pharmaceutical products, fee cream, etc.;
(d) binder, to consolidate the mass and prevent it from drying out during cooking
(sausages and processed meats);
(e) Stabilizer, owing to the high water-holding capacity of starch (e.g., in fee
cream).
Bakery products
Although starch is the major constituent of flours, the art of' bread baking
depends to a large extent on the selection of flour with the proper gluten
characteristics. Starch is used in biscuit making, to increase volume and crispness.
In Malaysia, cassava starch is used in sweetened and unsweetened biscuits and in
cream sandwiches at the rate of 5-10 percent in order to soften texture, add taste
and render the biscuit non-sticky. The use of dextrose in some kinds of yeast-raised
bread and bakery products has certain advantages as it is readily available lo the
yeast and the resulting fermentation is quick and complete. It also imparts a golden
brown colour to the crust and permits longer conservation.
Confectioneries
In addition to the widespread use of dextrose and glucose syrup as sweetening
agents in confectioneries. Starch and modified starches are also used in the
manufacture of many types of candies such as jellybeans, toffee, hard and soft gums,
boiled sweets (hard candy), fondants and Turkish delight. In confectioneries, starch
is used principally in the manufacture of gums, pastes and other types of sweets as
an ingredient, in the making of moulds or for dusting sweets to prevent them from
sticking together. Dextrose prevents crystallization in boiled sweets and reduces
hydro-scopicity in the finished product.

Canned fruits, jams and preserves

Recent advances in these industries include the partial replacement of sucrose
by dextrose or sulphur-dioxide-free glucose syrup. This helps to maintain the desired
percentage of solids in the products without giving excessive sweetness, thereby
emphasizing the natural flavour of the fruit. The tendency toward crystallization of
sugars is also decreased.
Monosodium glutamate (MSG)
This product is used extensively in many parts of the world in powder or
crystal form as a flavouring agent in foods such as meats, vegetables, sauces and
gravies. Cassava starch and molasses are the major raw materials used in the
manufacture of MSG in the Far East and Latin American countries. The starch is
usually hydrolysed into glucose by boiling with hydrochloric or sulphuric acid
solutions in closed converters under pressure. The glucose is filtered and converted
into glutamic acid by bacterial fermentation. The resulting glutamic acid is refined,
filtered and treated with caustic soda to produce monosodium glutamate, which is
then centrifuged and dried in drum driers. The finished product is usually at least
99 percent pure.
The production of commercial caramel
Caramel as a colouring agent for food, confectionery and liquor is extensively
made of glucose rather than sucrose because of its lower cost. If invert sugar,
dextrose or glucose is heated alone, a material is formed that is used for flavouring
purposes; but if heated in the presence of certain catalysts, the coloration is greatly
heightened, and the darker brown products formed can be used to colour many
foodstuffs and beverages.
Uniform and controlled heating with uniform agitation is necessary to carry
the caramelization to the point where all the sugar has been destroyed without
liberating the carbon.
THE GLUCOSE INDUSTRY
According to Whistler and Paschell, Abu Mansur, an Arabian teacher and
pharmacologist, about 975 A.D. described the conversion of starch with saliva into
an artificial honey. In 1811 Kirchoff discovered that sugar could be produced by the
acid hydrolysis of starch. Glucose, or dextrose sugar, is found in nature in sweet
fruits such as grapes and in honey. It is less sweet than sucrose (cane or beet sugar)
and also less soluble in water; however, when used in combination with sucrose, the
resulting sweetness is often greater than expected.
The commercial manufacture of glucose sugars from starch began during the
Napoleonic Wars with England, when suppliers of sucrose sugar were cut off from
France by sea blockade. Rapid progress was made in its production in the United
States about the middle of the nineteenth century.
At present, glucose is usually produced as a syrup or as a solid. The physical
properties of the syrup vary with the dextrose equivalent (DE) and the method of
manufacture. Dextrose equivalent is the total reducing sugars expressed as dextrose
and calculated as a percentage of the total dry substance. Glucose is the common
name for the syrup and dextrose for the solid sugar. Dextrose, sometimes called
grape sugar, is the D-glucose produced by the complete hydrolysis of starch.
Starch hydrolysis

Two methods for starch hydrolysis are used today for the commercial
production of glucose: acid hydrolysis and partial acid hydrolysis followed by an
enzyme conversion.
Acidification is the conversion of starch into glucose sugar by acid hydrolysis.
This operation is carried out in batches or a continuous process. In the first process,
the starch slurry, 20-21Be, is mixed with hydrochloric acid (sulphuric acid is
sometimes used) to bring the pH to around 1.8-2.0 in a steam converter and heated
to about 160C until the desired DE is reached. The continuous process, which is
replacing the batch process, involves feeding the mixture of starch slurry and
hydrochloric acid into a tubular heat-exchanger. The time and temperature of the
process are adjusted to the desired DE in the end product.
In the next step, neutralization, the acidified mixture is neutralized with
sodium carbonate or soda ash to remove the free acid and bring the pH value to 5.0
7.0. Sodium chloride is formed in the syrup in small quantities as a result of the
neutralization of the hydrochloric acid by the sodium carbonate and remains in
solution.
Refining follows. Some solids - impurities, precipitated protein and coagulated
fat - can be removed by centrifugal separation. Impurities will depend largely on the
starch used and its purity. The solution is then passed through filters (filter presses
or candle-type ceramic filters).
The clear brown filtrate is decolourized by passing it through tanks of
activated carbon, which removes colours and other impurities from the solution by
surface adsorption but has no effect on the sugar.
Refining can be done by ion-change resins instead of activated carbon or
combined with it. A recent development is to refine the converted liquor by electro
dialysis, and the final glucose syrup is very superior.
Concentration is the final step. The refined syrup is concentrated under
vacuum in batch converters or continuous heat exchangers until the concentrated
syrup reaches 80-85 percent solids or 43 45B. Commercial glucose syrups are sold
according to the Baume standard, which is a measure of the dry substance content
and specific gravity.
Glucose syrup is transported in drums or in bulk road or rail tanks. It should
not be stored in large quantities for long periods of time because its colour may
deteriorate.
In the acid-enzyme process the starch slurry is treated by acidification,
neutralization and filtration as in the acid hydrolysis process and then is fed into the
enzyme converter. The temperature and pH are adjusted to the optimum conditions
and the enzyme is added with slow agitation. The time of conversion depends on the
initial dextrose equivalent obtained by acid hydrolysis, the type and strength of the
enzyme and the final DE required. After the conversion has been completed, the
enzyme is rendered inactive by raising the temperature and adjusting the pH, and
the converted syrup is then re-fed and concentrated in the same manner as in the
acid-converted glucose syrup.
The use of certain enzymes results in DE values as high as 98-99 which means
a higher yield of dextrose from starch, or nearly complete conversion of starch into
dextrose. When acid is used as the hydrolysing agent, the DE of the conversion
liquor, however, reaches only about 92 because a certain degree of poly-condensation
takes place and some of the yield of dextrose is lost owing to the acidity and high
temperatures required for the conversion.

The production of dextrose

At present most of the dextrose in commerce is prepared in the form of pure
dextrose monohydrate by a combined acid-enzyme process. The hot, thick glucose
syrup with a concentration of 70-80 percent dextrose is run from the evaporator into
crystallizing pans. Crystal formation is largely controlled by the quantity of dextrins
left with the glucose. The separation of crystals from the syrup is carried out in
centrifugal separators and the impurities are left in the mother liquor. Crystalline
dextrose is then dried in rotary hot-air driers under vacuum and bagged in moistureproof materials.
Recrystallization of dextrose will yield practically 100 percent pure dextrose
crystals which are used as a pharmaceutical-grade sugar.
The starch used in the manufacture of glucose syrup must be as pure as
possible with a low protein content (particularly soluble protein). In this respect,
cassava starch can be preferable to other starches.
There is an increasing interest in manufacturing glucose syrup directly from
starchy roots or grains rather than from the separated starch in order to save on
capital investments for the production and purification of starch from such raw
materials.
The starch conversion industry (glucose and dextrose) is the largest single
consumer of starch, utilizing about 60 percent of total starch production. Glucose
syrup and crystalline dextrose compete with sucrose sugar and are used in large
quantities in fruit canning, confectioneries, jams, jellies, preserves, ice cream, bakery
products, pharmaceuticals, beverages and alcoholic fermentation.
The functional purpose of glucose and dextrose in the confectionery industry
is to prevent crystallization of the sucrose; in the bakery products industry it is to
supply fermentable carbohydrates; and in the ice-cream, fruit-preserves and similar
industries it is to increase the solids without causing an undue increase in the total
sweetness, thus emphasizing the natural flavour of the fruit, and also to prevent the
formation of large ice crystals which mar the smooth texture.
In general, glucose and dextrose are used in the food industry as a partial or
complete substitute for sucrose. The use of dextrose has increased in recent years in
the food-processing industries.
Cassava in composite flours
In many developing countries bread consumption is continually expanding
and there is increasing dependence on imported wheat. Most of these countries,
however, grow staples other than wheat that can be used for bread. Some grow
various starchy tubers such as cassava, yam or sweet potatoes and some others grow
cereals such as maize, millet or sorghum. It would therefore be economically
advantageous for those countries if imports of wheat could be reduced or even
eliminated and the demand for bread could be met by the use of domestically grown
products instead of wheat.
The Composite Flour Programme initiated by the Food and Agriculture
Organization of the United Nations in 1964 was conceived primarily to develop
bakery products from locally available raw materials, particularly in those countries
which could not meet their wheat requirements. Although the bakery products
obtained were of good quality, similar in some of their main characteristics to wheatflour bread, the texture and palatability of the composite-flour bakery products were
different from those made from wheat flour. Bread made of non-glutinous flour has

the crust and crumb structure of cake rather than bread and may not be considered
acceptable by people who are accustomed to conventional bread.
The light, evenly structured bread made of wheat flour and the characteristic
soft crumb are due to the swelling properties of wheat-flour gluten in water. If pure
starch from another cereal or tuber is used, the product is considerably more rigid
and its texture is irregular because gases are insufficiently retained in the dough.
Therefore, when starches that do not contain gluten-forming proteins are used, a
swelling or binding agent must be added during the preparation of the dough to bind
the starch granules (i.e., egg white, gums, glyceryl monostearate).
Efforts have been made in many countries to produce bread by conventional
methods from wheat flour to which other flours such as cassava flour were added. It
was generally found that the upper limit of such an addition was about 10 percent
as the quality of the resultant bread was rapidly impaired beyond this limit of nonwheat flour content. However, recent experiments have shown that it is possible to
increase the level of the non-wheat flour considerably without too great a change in
the bread characteristics, provided certain bread improvers such as calcium stearyl
lactylate are added or a relatively high percentage of fat and sugar is used. Bread of
acceptable quality was obtained by the use of 30 percent of either cassava or corn
(maize) starch and 70 percent wheat noun
Experiments made by the Institute of Food Technology in Rio de Janeiro show
that 10 percent flour and 5 percent cassava or corn (maize) starch can be added to
wheat flour of only medium strength (9-11 percent gluten) and made into a dough
containing only I percent shortening which can be baked into loaves of as good
quality and appearance as those of the respective wheat-flour samples.
Other experiments in some countries have been undertaken to make bread
from non-wheat flours alone or mixed with wheat flour. Flours included cassava flour
and cassava starch and sources of proteins included full-fat and defatted oilseed
flours such as cottonseed, soybean and groundnut, as well as fish meal. In addition,
binding agents, water, salt and sugar were used. The proportion of the protein source
to starch was varied so as to ensure a protein content of 1820 percent in the
composite flour. Results of using non-wheat flours alone suggested that the
combination of cassava flour and cassava starch could be used in bread-making and
that bread made from cassava flour and defatted soybean flour was of good quality.
From the nutritional point of view, the protein quality of both the cassava-soya and
the cassava-groundnut breads was higher than that of common wheat bread. In
general, as in normal bread-making, the results depend on different factors operating
in the bread-making procedure and the quality of the raw materials.
In India, a new product called tapioca macaroni was developed by adding a
small percentage of specially prepared groundnut meal and wheat semolina to
cassava flour. The mixture is processed, cooked and consumed in the same way as
food grains. The protein content is comparable to that of wheat (about 10 percent)
and the macaroni is nearly twice as nutritious as rice.
The Food and Agriculture Organization has lately considered it desirable to
investigate the possibility of making bread and similar bakery products of raw
materials derived from starchy tubers and defatted oilseeds. An agreement was made
between the Organization and some well-known research institutions to study this
possibility. The following experiments have been realized:
(a) Development of a bread made from non-wheat materials at the Institute of
Grain, Flour and Bread (TNO), Wageningen, the Netherlands.

(b) Development of a bread with partial replacement of wheat flour at the

Tropical Products Institute, London.
MECHANICAL LEAVENING
Mechanical leavening of bread dough is fast replacing conventional
fermentation systems. This process offers the advantages of simplification,
elimination of bulk fermentation and better uniformity of dough consistency besides
the possibility of utilizing weaker flours and starches with wheat flour. The
Chorleywood Bread Process, adopted in 1961, is used to produce the highest
proportion of all the bread consumed in the United Kingdom.
Experiments carried out by the British Arkady Co. Ltd., using mechanical
leavening rather than bulk fermentation for the ripening of the dough and a blend of
60 percent wheat flour, 30 percent cassava starch and 10 percent soybean flour,
produced a bread of good quality almost equal to the normal wheat-flour bread in
volume, appearance and eating quality.
Several FAO-operated UNDP/SF projects concerned with the use of composite
flours in bread-making have been realized. Bakery products made from composite
flours of wheat (at least 75 percent) and potato, maize and cassava have been
developed by an experimental bakery in Campinas, State of So Paulo, Brazil. (Other
projects involving the use of flours other than cassava flour in bakery products have
been carried out in Niger, Senegal and Sudan.) The report of a joint FAO/UNDP
mission in Colombia recommended the establishment of an experimental bakery to
determine the suitability of locally available raw materials for the production of
bakery products from composite flours (e.g., cassava/soybean). The project was
executed with FAO participation under a bilateral agreement between Colombia and
the Netherlands.
NUTRITIONAL VALUE OF COMPOSITE FLOURS
The nutritional value of bakery products made from composite flours was
assessed in 1965 by the Central Institute for Nutrition and Food Research, (Utrecht,
Zeist), where the nutritional value of cassava/soya bread and cassava/groundnut
bread was compared with the protein quality of common wheat bread. It was
concluded that the protein quality of both breads was higher than that of common
wheat bread. The cassava/soya bread topped the other two breads in protein quality,
while the cassava/groundnut bread was slightly superior to common wheat bread.
In 1969 at the Queen Elizabeth College, London, breads produced at the
British Arkady Co. Ltd. were assessed. They were made from various composite flour
mixtures consisting of wheat flour, cassava starch, soya flour, millet and sorghum
flour and fish-protein concentrate in various proportions with mechanical leavening.
Results indicated that the protein value of the original bread had not been impaired
by supplementation, but showed improvement.
Prospects for commercial production and widespread consumption of bread
made of composite flours in different countries will depend upon local acceptance
(taste and characteristics of the bread) and the price at which the bread will be
available to the public.
Food habits are primarily based on socioeconomic and other conditions rather
than on scientific considerations. Changes in established habits can take place
gradually through public education and the spread of knowledge.
Cassava in animal feed

Cassava is widely used in most tropical areas for feeding pigs, cattle, sheep
and poultry. Dried peels of cassava roots are fed to sheep and goats, and raw or
boiled roots are mixed into a mash with protein concentrates such as maize,
sorghum, groundnut or oil-palm kernel meals and mineral salts for livestock feeding.
In many tropical regions, the leaves and stems of the cassava plant are
considered a waste product. However, analytical tests have proved that the leaves
have a protein content equivalent to that of alfalfa (about 17-20 percent). Feeding
experiments also showed that dehydrated cassava leaves are equivalent in feed value
to alfalfa. Imports of dehydrated alfalfa in the Far East, mainly in Japan, have
reached about 240 000 tons a year. Therefore, a large potential exists for the
exportation of dehydrated stems and leaves of cassava.
In Brazil and many parts of Southeast Asia, large quantities of cassava roots,
stems and leaves are chopped and mixed into a silage for the feeding of cattle and
pigs. This use of cassava is increasing.
Cassava, similar to feed-grains, consists almost entirely of starch and is easy
to digest. The roots are, therefore, especially suited to feeding young animals and
fattening pigs. Many feeding experiments have shown that cassava provides a good
quality carbohydrate which may be substituted for maize or barley and that cassava
rations are especially suitable for swine, dairy cattle and poultry. However, cassava
cannot be used as the sole feedstuff because of its deficiency in protein and vitamins,
but must be supplemented by other feeds that are rich in these elements.
The amount of cassava and its products fed to animals as scraps in the
tropical regions must be fairly large, but there is no way of estimating it. Barnyard
fowls, goats and pigs probably consume cassava roots and leaves regularly in many
parts of the tropics, but a true livestock feeding industry based on cassava has been
developed only in very few areas.
In the European Economic Community the highly developed compound
animal-feed industry uses dried cassava roots as an ingredient, and large quantities
of cassava chips, pellets and meal are imported into these countries for this purpose.
The composition of a compound animal feed varies according to the animal (cattle,
pigs or poultry) as well as to the kind of production (dairy, meat or eggs).
There are many constituents which can be used to supply the main elements
in compound feed, such as starch, protein, fat, minerals and vitamins. In general,
oil cakes are the main ingredients in the feedstuffs for cattle, while feed-grains are
the most important for pigs and poultry. Cassava products were long used as a raw
material for compound feedstuffs until their use declined after the Second World
War, when grains became cheaper than cassava products in Europe. When grain
prices rose again, cassava products were once more used extensively. The maximum
content of cassava products in compound feedstuffs is officially set in many
countries. In the Federal Republic of Germany, it varies according to the type, but is
generally as follows: 10-40 percent for pigs, 20-25 percent for cattle and 10-20
percent for poultry; in the Netherlands and Belgium, however, the figures are much
lower.
At present many large manufacturers are equipped with electronic computers
to determine the composition of compounds in terms of feed values and price.
Non-food uses
Starch makes a good natural adhesive. There are two types of adhesives made
of starches, modified starches and dextrins: roll-dried adhesives and liquid
adhesives.

The application of cassava in adhesives continues to be one of the most

important end uses of the product. In the manufacture of glue the starch is simply
gelatinized in hot water or with the help of chemicals. For conversion into dextrin it
is subjected separately or simultaneously to the disintegrative action of chemicals,
heat and enzymes.
In gelatinized starch adhesives, quality requirements are such that the
medium-quality flours can be used. In dextrin manufacture, the demands are much
more exacting: only the purest flours with a low acid factor are acceptable. Cassava
dextrin is preferred in remoistening gums for stamps, envelope flaps and so on
because of its adhesive properties and its agreeable taste and odour.
Dextrins were accidentally discovered in 1821 when during a fire in a Dublin
(Ireland) textile mill one of the workmen noticed that some of the starch had turned
brown with the heat and dissolved easily in water to form a thick adhesive paste.
Three primary groups of dextrins are now known: British gums, white dextrins
and yellow dextrins.
British gums are formed by heating the starch alone or in the presence of
small amounts of alkaline buffer salts to a temperature range of about 180220C.
The final products range in colour from light to very dark brown. They give aqueous
solutions with lower viscosities than starch.
White dextrins are prepared by mild heating of the starch with a relatively
large amount of added catalyst, such as hydrochloric acid, at a low temperature of
80-120C for short periods of time. The final product is almost white, has very
limited solubility in water and retains to varying degrees the set-back tendency of
the original starch paste.
Yellow dextrins are formed when lower acid or catalyst levels are used with
higher temperatures of conversion (150-220C) for longer conversion times. They
are soluble in water, form solutions of low viscosity and are light yellow to brown in
colour.
The following are some of the major uses of dextrins in non-food industries.
Corrugated cardboard manufacture. One of the large users of dextrins is
the corrugated cardboard industry for the manufacture of cartons boxes and other
packing materials. The layers of board are glued together with a suspension of raw
starch in a solution of the gelatinized form. The board is pressed between hot rollers,
which effects a gelatinization of the raw starch and results in a very strong bonding.
Medium-quality flours are suitable for this purpose provided the pulp content is not
too high.
Remoistening gums. These adhesives are coated and dried on surfaces, such
as postage stamps and envelope flaps, for moistening by the user before application
to another surface. Cassava dextrins in aqueous solution are well suited for this
purpose as they give a high solids solution with clean machining properties.
Wallpaper and other home uses. Various types of starch-based products
are used as adhesives for wallpaper and other domestic uses.
Foundry. Starch is used as an adhesive for coating the sand grains and
binding them together in making cores which are placed in moulds in the
manufacture of castings for metals.
Well drilling. Starches and modified starches mixed with clay are used to
give the correct viscosity and water-holding capacity in bores for the exploratory
drilling of oil wells or water wells. These starch products are replacing other

commercial products for making the muddy materials which are indispensable for
drilling wells. For this purpose a cold water-soluble pre-gelatinized starch which can
be made up to a paste of the required concentration on the spot is desired.
Paper industry. In the paper and board industries, starch is used in large
quantities at three points during the process:
a) At the end of the wet treatment, when the basic cellulose fibre is beaten to the
desired pulp in order to increase the strength of the finished paper and to
impart body and resistance to scuffing and folding;
b) At the size press, when the paper sheet or board has been formed and partially
dried, starch (generally oxidized or modified) is usually added to one or both
sides of the paper sheet or board to improve the finish, appearance, strength
and printing properties;
c) In the coating operation, when a pigment coating is required for the paper,
starch acts as a coating agent and as an adhesive.
Cassava starch has been widely used as a tub size and beater size in the
manufacture of paper, in the past mainly on account of its low price. A high colour
(whiteness), low dirt and fibre content, and, above all, uniformity of lots are needed
in this instance.
An important new application of starch is in the machine-coating of magazine
paper, formerly done exclusively with caseins. There are indications that cassava is
particularly well suited to the purpose; however, definite specifications for the starch
still have to be worked out.
Textile industry. In the textile industry, starches occupy an important place
in such operations as warp sizing, cloth finishing and printing. Warp sizing is the
application of a protective coating to prevent the single yarns from disintegrating
during weaving. The size consists of an adhesive and a lubricant and is generally
removed after weaving. Cloth finishing alters the "feel" of the fabric by making it
firmer, stiffer and heavier. Cassava starch is also used for cloth printing or producing
certain designs in various colours on the smooth surface of a finished fabric. While
cassava accounted for about 20 percent of all starch for these purposes in 1937, it
has been largely replaced by other starches after the Second World War.
An exception is the manufacture of felt, where cassava continues to be used
exclusively in the finishing process.
Wood furniture. Before the Second World War the manufacture of plywood
and veneer relied mainly on cassava as a glue. The basic material in this case is
gelatinized at room temperature with about double the amount of a solution of
sodium hydroxide. After prolonged kneading of the very stiff paste in order to give it
the required stringy consistency, the glue is applied to the wood with rollers. As the
presence of a certain amount of the pulp is useful, medium- to low-quality flours are
acceptable or even preferable, although the presence of sand is objectionable.
Since 1945, however, the use of cassava as a glue has declined to second place
owing to the increasing success of water-resistant plastics.
Particle board from cassava stalks
As cassava cultivation increases, more stalks will become available for
disposal. The Tropical Products Institute, London, has been working on the
utilization of the cassava plant. Particle boards could be made from cassava stalks
by cutting them into small sections and mixing them with certain resins. The
strength of the board can be varied by altering the resin content or the density.

Fermented products
CASSAVA ALCOHOL
Cassava is one of the richest fermentable substances for the production of
alcohol. The fresh roots contain about 30 percent starch and 5 percent sugars, and
the dried roots contain about 80 percent fermentable substances which are
equivalent to rice as a source of alcohol.
Ethyl alcohol is produced from many carbohydrate materials. In Malaysia and
some other countries, many factories are equipped to use cassava roots, starch or
molasses (by-product of the sugar industry), the type of product depending on the
costs of the raw materials. When cassava is used, the roots are washed, crushed into
a thin pulp and then screened. Saccharification is carried out by adding sulphuric
acid to the pulp in pressure cookers until total sugars reach 15-17 percent of the
contents. The pH value is adjusted by using sodium carbonate, and then yeast
fermentation is allowed for three to four days at a suitable temperature for the
production of alcohol, carbon dioxide and small amounts of other substances from
sugar. Alcohol is then separated by heat distillation. The yield of conversion is about
70-110 litres of absolute alcohol per ton of cassava roots depending on the variety
and method of manufacture. The crude alcohol of cassava is described as average in
quality. It has a disagreeable odour, but can be improved if the first and last fractions
in the distillation process are discarded. It is usually utilized for industrial purposes,
as in cosmetics, solvents and pharmaceutical products. If the production is required
for human consumption, special care should be taken in handling the roots to rid
them of hydrocyanic acid.
DRIED YEAST
Microbial protein is attracting growing interest owing to the enormous protein
requirements of the world. Among the microorganisms which are considered possible
food sources, yeast has perhaps stirred the greatest interest. Candida and
saccharomyces yeasts have had a well-established place for many years as feed, and
the technology of production, the composition and the nutritive value of yeast are
well known.
Most of the production of yeast is based on such low-cost raw materials as
waste liquids, wood hydrolyzates and molasses. Starch-rich plant materials from
wastes or surplus production are also utilized as substrata for yeast production.
Cassava starch and cassava roots are being used in Malaysia and some other
countries for the production of yeasts for animal feed' the human diet and for bakery
yeast. The starch is hydrolysed into simple sugars (predominantly glucose) by means
of mineral acid or by enzymes. Certain yeasts are then propagated which assimilate
the simple sugars and produce microbial cellular substances. The dry, inactive yeast
contains about 7 percent moisture and the raw protein content can vary between 40
and 50 percent depending on the raw material.
The yield of yeast production also depends on the raw material. In some
applications of cassava starch conversion into substances obtained from yeasts, a
38-42 percent yield of yeast product containing 50 percent raw protein has been
obtained
Competitive position of cassava
Looking back on the many uses of cassava, it may be asked: what are the
reasons for its rapid introduction and permanent use in some starch-using
industries, while in others it has not gained a place of importance? One explanation
is found in the unique properties of this kind of starch.

While full treatment of the colloidal behaviour of cassava is outside the scope
of the present paper, the more essential of these properties may be summarized as
follows. The product is readily gelatinized by cooking with water, and the solution
after cooling remains comparatively fluid; jellies or puddings cannot be prepared with
it. The solutions, moreover, are relatively stable in that they do not readily separate
again into an insoluble form, as is the case with corn (maize) starch and potato starch
("retrogradation").
Various factors of lesser importance have also influenced the position of
cassava on the market, mainly in a negative sense. Being produced mostly in
developing regions with an unstable economic position, it is not available with the
same regularity and predictability as, for instance, corn (maize) starch; it is available
in many grades and qualities, which are highly variable, and its price, especially in
recent years, fluctuates considerably.
It is possible to distinguish three sectors of the starch-using industries, in
each of which cassava occupies a fundamentally different position:
a) Where irreplaceable by other starches.
In the manufacture of remoistening gums cassava has no competitors for the
time being. Attention should be called, however, to the continuous efforts to adapt
other starches to the special demands of these industries, both by chemical means
as well as by the selection of starch-bearing plants. Mention should be made of the
so-called waxy-maize starch, which approaches cassava in many respects.
b) Where other starches are preferable despite the cost factor.
Some of the more desirable characteristics of other starches may be the result
of further processing, as, for instance, in the corn (maize) starch industry. Examples
are the thin-boiling, chlorinated and other special starches. Cassava furnishes only
a crude starch with a wide range of quality and characteristics.
c) Where interchangeable with other starches.
In this case, price and marketing conditions are the only controlling factors.
Because of severe competition from other kinds of starch, in this field cassava has
lost much ground of late.
It can safely be concluded that a market for cassava of all grades will be found
for many years to come; however, the possibility of an expansion of its use will depend
to a great extent on improved techniques in processing as well as on more efficient
methods of marketing the flour.

7. Quality control of cassava products

In the processing of cassava, questions naturally arise regarding efficiency
and output; moreover, in selling the product the determination of quality becomes
important. These problems can only be resolved by qualitative and quantitative study
of the composition of the raw materials and the properties of the finished products.
The financial return, especially in large factories, will depend to a certain degree on
such control analyses, which in a way are actually part of the processing itself.
Analysis of basic materials
The two important basic materials requiring analysis are the cassava roots
and the water used in processing. The best practical qualitative test of these
materials consists in reproducing the whole process on a small scale and judging the
resulting flour by comparing it with a standard sample or by analysing it according
to the methods described farther on. In fact, for judging the suitability of the water
available, small-scale processing is the only test of practical value.
Apart from this, since starch is the substance to be isolated, a determination
of the starch content in both the fresh roots and the pulp remaining after rasping
and wet-screening is necessary for control of the efficiency of the process and in
particular for determination of the rasping effect.
Finally, tests for the presence of hydrocyanic acid are necessary owing to the
important food uses of cassava.
TEST PROCESSING ON A SMALL SCALE
A random sample of, say, 10 kg of cassava is thoroughly washed to remove
the cork layer; then either the whole or the peeled roots are grated or ground. The
pulp is washed out over 50-mesh bronze gauze and the flour milk obtained over 260mesh gauze. When the suspension reaches 3 Brix
(Approximately 35 g of dry starch per litre), it is left to settle for four hours.
The top liquid is then decanted, and water is added to the settled starch to make a
slurry of 10 Brix, which is strained over 260-mesh gauze and left to settle for the
second time. After decanting, the starch is mixed with water to a thick suspension
(45 Brix) and filtered on a Buchner funnel under vacuum. The moist starch is dried
in an oven, preferably in circulating air, commencing at a temperature of 50C, and
concluding at 60C. The dried starch is sieved through silk before examination.
DETERMINATION OF STARCH CONTENT IN FRESH ROOTS AND WASTE PULP
This analysis is best carried out with oven-dried pulp, a separate sample of
fresh, moist pulp being used to determine moisture or water content, or with a
sample of the fresh root material.
1. Quantitative determination of starch content is based on hydrolysis with acid
and measurement of the resulting glucose. The weighed sample representing
about 2.5 g of dried materials is ground and stirred with 250 ml of water for
an hour, after which the insoluble residue is transferred to a vessel along with
an additional 250 ml of water. After adding 200 ml of 0.5 NHCI, the solution
is boiled under reflux and cooled; then the acidity is adjusted to pH 5 with
NaOH, and when the solution reaches 250 ml, it is filtered. The glucose
equivalent is determined by an aliquot according to the Munson and Walker
method or any other suitable method (as described, for instance, in Methods
of analysis of the Association of Official Agricultural Chemists, 1956). The
amount of glucose multiplied by 0.93 is taken to equal the amount of starch
which was in the aliquot.

2. A short-cut in the analysis of fresh roots is possible by determining the water

content rather than the starch content. The method is practical especially
where the variety of cassava and the growing conditions may be considered
practically constant. The following empirical relation has been established as
the result of a series of analyses of roots of four different strains of cassava,
all grown on the same soil and during the same period.
Whole root:
Percent starch = percent total dry matter -7.3 = 92.7 - percent water
Peeled root:
Percent starch = percent total dry matter - 6.8 = 93.2 - percent water
Although the constants occurring in the above equations will have to be redetermined for each new set of circumstances, the application of these rules may be
of great help in factories lacking chemical personnel and equipment.
3. A simple and inexpensive method for the quantitative determination of
starch in cassava roots has been described by Krochmal and Kilbride. During peak
seasons cassava tubers are kept in polyethylene bags and stored in a deep-freezer.
The frozen samples are sliced and blended with 500 ml of water for five minutes in a
blender. The pulp is washed on a sieve with an additional 500 ml of water, and the
fibrous material retained on the sieve is thrown away. The washed material is poured
into aluminium pans and dried at about 85C for 6-12 hours until a constant weight
is attained. The weight of the residue represents the percentage of starch calculated
from the weight of the sample.
Rasping effect
The fraction of the starch in the roots which is set free by rasping may be
evaluated directly by washing out a weighed sample of the pulp, as obtained from
the factory rasper, on a 260-mesh sieve, collecting the starch on a filter, and weighing
it after thorough drying. The percentage of free starch thus obtained divided by the
total starch content of the pulp gives the rasping effect (R).
The following method for the determination of R may be preferable in certain
respects as it obviates the rather difficult direct determination of the free starch by
using only the analysis for starch and fibre content of the roots and the waste pulp
produced in processing them.
The roots are analysed for starch using one of the methods described
previously and for fibre (cellulose). A sample of the waste pulp obtained in processing
the roots is dried in an oven, milled and analysed for the same components. Since
the waste pulp consists substantially of water, cellulose and starch, the percentage
of starch can be deduced from the moisture and fibre content. The same holds for
the roots, provided the freshly ground mass is washed out in a filter before analysing
it.
If the starch contents of the roots and the waste pulp are sr and sw respectively
and the corresponding fibre contents are fr and fw it is readily seen that the fraction
of the starch which remains bound to the fibre (i.e., occluded in cells which have
escaped crushing by the rasper) amounts to

( / )
( )
= ( )

( / )
And thus the rasping effect is


= [1 (
)] 100

PRUSSIC (HYDROCYANIC) ACID ANALYSIS
Qualitative test (Quignard's test)
Prepare sodium picrate paper by dipping strips into 1 percent picric acid
solution and then, after drying, dipping them into 10 percent sodium carbonate
solution, thereafter drying them again. Preserve these strips of paper in a stoppered
bottle. Chop finely a small amount of the roots to be tested and put the choppings
into a test tube. Insert a piece of moist sodium picrate paper, taking care that it does
not come into contact with the root pulp. Add a few drops of chloroform and stopper
the tube tightly. The sodium picrate paper gradually turns orange if the root material
releases hydrocyanic acid. The test is a delicate one, and the rapidity of the colour
change depends on the quantity of free hydrocyanic acid present.
Quantitative determination (alkaline titration method)
Put 10 to 20 g of the crushed root material in a distillation flask, add about
200 ml of water and allow to stand two to four hours, in order to set free all the
bound hydrocyanic acid, meanwhile keeping the flask connected with an apparatus
for distillation. Distil with steam and collect 150-200 ml of distillate in a solution of
0.5 g of sodium hydroxide in 20 ml of water. To 100 ml of distillate (it is preferable
to dilute to a volume of 250 ml and titrate an aliquot of 100 ml) add 8 ml of 5 percent
potassium iodide solution and titrate with 0.02 N silver nitrate (I ml of 0.02 N silver
nitrate corresponds to 1.08 mg of hydrocyanic acid) using a microburet. The end
point is indicated by a faint but permanent turbidity which may be easily recognized,
especially against a black background.
Criteria for quality of flour and starch
For a product like starch, which is used as a basic material in many quite
different branches of industry, the value of a certain brand greatly depends on the
purpose for which it is intended. Quality in cassava can therefore only be defined
with reference to the end use. In each industry using the starch, the starting material
will be subjected to certain tests in order to determine whether it is suitable for the
process concerned. In some cases, a mere superficial test of purity will suffice (when,
for instance, it is used as a filler); in others, more elaborate determinations will be
necessary. The value of the product in question will thus vary from case to case, and
quality as well as price will emerge as a result of these investigations.
In general it can be said that the more careful and clean the manufacture of
cassava flour, the higher will be its value for most purposes and thus its quality.
There are, however, some exceptions to this rule, as where a flour of medium purity
is preferred to one of prime quality. The medium- and off-quality flours have a market
comparable in volume to that of the prime-quality flours.
The analysis of cassava flour consists of a group of selected tests, which
together provide the best possible general insight into the usefulness of the material.
The analysis comprises chemical determinations, such as those of water, pulp and
ash, as well as physiochemical tests for the measurement of viscosity and acidity.
On the basis of the results of these tests, quality is usually designated in the form of
a grade, that is, a cipher expressing the quality in general or, more specifically, in
relation to a certain property. The letters A, B and C thus often denote first, medium
and poor quality, each classification being bound to specified limits of the properties
investigated.

Cassava producers and industrial users have long understood that a

universally accepted system of specifications with concomitant grading based on the
results of a number of accurately defined tests would do much to stabilize marketing.
The first attempt to draw up such a system of specifications was made in Indonesia
between 1930 and 1940; it was based upon a series of qualitative and semiquantitative tests which had long been used in commercial circles. Certificates
stating the results of analysis of the flour according to this system, notwithstanding
its shortcomings, gave buyers in most countries an adequate idea of the quality of
the product.
Technical developments in the countries where most of the end-use industries
are centred, particularly the United States, led to much more specific and stringent
demands regarding certain properties of the flour. Existing specifications soon
ceased to cover satisfactorily the relevant features of the various brands of flour. To
correct the situation and to adapt the grading of the product more closely to its
various applications, a new system of specifications and grading was drawn up in
1943 by the Tapioca Institute of America (TIA) in close cooperation with most enduse industries. This widely adopted system is given in full in Appendix 1.
The tests to determine the quality of cassava starch include those for mesh
size, colour, odour, cleanliness, pulp or fibre content, moisture content, ash, acidity
and viscosity of cold flour slurry as well as cooked starch paste. All these tests help
establish the grade and therefore the commercial value of the product. The
discussion of these quality features will bring out more clearly the significance of the
properties involved. For several of these properties alternative methods of
determination sometimes give valuable complementary information on the quality of
the flour.
MESH SIZE
This test measures efficiency of bolting. Fine pulp, however, obtained from
bolting with disintegrators will pass the screens. In judging the purity of a flour,
neither this test nor the determination of pulp under the TIA system is sufficiently
precise; it is supplemented in a way by the cleanliness test and an additional
determination of pulp content by hydrolysis would seem advisable.
DRY APPEARANCE
In this test the brightness or whiteness of the flour is visually compared with
that of a "standard," which is a prime-grade flour produced by certain first-class
factories. The result cannot be clearly expressed by enumeration. Besides, the
difficulty of procuring flour of standard whiteness which will keep for a sufficiently
long time is an important drawback.
With the many excellent modern types of spectrophotometric apparatus
available, however, it would not be hard to devise an objective and accurate
quantitative expression for the whiteness of the flour as measured by its reflectivity
relative to that of a sufficiently durable standard of whiteness (e.g., barium sulphate).
In fact, this method has been adopted in Indonesia. Remarkably enough,
comparative experiments in which the same flours were judged by the direct visual
method and by the objective reflectivity method have shown that the former test is
about as accurate as the latter, provided the observer has enough experience with
the visual method and has accustomed himself to the standard of whiteness adopted.
As an independent measure of the purity of the flour, dry appearance has lost
much of its significance, but it is still a commercial criterion. It is customary in
commerce to estimate the number of specks occurring on a flattened surface of the
dry flour as an indication of clean processing.

CLEANLINESS
The following is a somewhat elaborate form of the test for specks which
indicates the total amount of foreign particles in a sample. Five millilitres of distilled
water are added to I g of dried starch. The mixture is stirred, and then 5 ml of 0.7 N
sodium hydroxide solution are added and the uniform gelatinized mixture is
examined for impurities. The degree of whiteness and clearness depends on the
quantity of pigment, dirt and protein present in the starch.
PULP
The amount of pulp, or fibre, present in the finished product is of foremost
importance in deciding the usefulness of a flour in various applications. The presence
of insoluble cellulose is a serious hindrance in almost any industry where solutions
of gelatinized starch are needed. Exceptions are the manufacture of corrugated
cardboard and of plywood where the fibre is useful to a certain extent as a binder.
In the form given in the specification system under consideration, the test
makes possible the determination of small amounts of fibre with comparative ease.
The sediment volume measured is somewhat dependent on the fineness of the fibre.
The presence of a slight trace of fibre, pulp or other impurity can be detected by
microscopic examination of the size and shape of the starch granules.
The actual amount of cellulosic fibre in the flour and of foreign insoluble
material can be determined by weighing the residue after a mild acid hydrolysis of
the sample. Two to three grams of flour are boiled with 100 mm of 0.4 percent
hydrochloric acid for one hour. The liquid is filtered through a weighed filter crucible
fitted with filter paper or through a Jena glass filter, G 3. After washing with hot
water the crucible is dried at 105" to 110C to a constant weight. One hundred times
the gain in weight of the crucible divided by the weight of the test portion is the
percentage of fibre and impurities.
It has been found that the determination of fibre content with these two
methods runs parallel to a certain extent - that is, a 0.6 percent fibre content by the
hydrolysis method corresponds to 10 ml of pulp per 50 g of flour by wet-screening.
A rough estimate of the amount of pulp may be based on the "crunch" of the
flour - that is, the sound emitted when a sample, packed tightly in a small bag, is
pinched between the fingers. "Crunch" is strong in pure flours, but above a certain
pulp content it is lost.
VISCOSITY
Raw starch suspended in water gives rise to more or less viscous slurries.
While in some applications the viscosity of these suspensions may be of some
technical importance, the term "viscosity of flour" is generally used for the viscosity
of a solution of flour after gelatinization, because it is in that form that flour is used
in most industries.
Numerous methods are used to determine this property. They differ in the
instrument applied in the actual measurement of the rate of flow of starch solutions,
and in the method of preparing the starch solutions to be tested. As the comparative
test in the present specification system is rather subjective, a few quantitative
determinations which have found wide application in the starch industry
(particularly cassava) are described below.
Hot-paste viscosity
This is the viscosity measured after the gelatinization of a sample in hot water.
The instrument used is an Engler viscometer, which must be operated accurately,

for
variations
in
the
preliminary treatment of the
paste have an appreciable
effect on the result. The Engler
viscometer consists of two
concentric cylindrical copper
vessels. The outer vessel (A)
filled with water serves as a
heating bath. The inner vessel
(C) is gilded inside and marked
with three indications (a) on a
plane perpendicular to the
axis of the instrument. By
adjusting screws on the legs of
the instrument, the surface of
a liquid in the inner vessel can
be made to touch these marks
at the same time, in this way
ensuring an exactly vertical
position of the instrument and
a controlled level of liquid in
the vessel. The outer bath is
heated by a ring burner. The
vessel (C) can be closed by a lid
(D) in which a thermometer
(Kl) can be fitted; another
thermometer (K2) is placed in
the bath. Before measurement
the peg (h) is placed in the
upper opening of the orifice
(b), the actual measuring
capillary of very precise
dimensions. The liquid to be
measured is then poured into
the interior vessel to the level
indicated by the marks; the lid
is put in place, and after a few
minutes
needed
for
equalization
of
the
temperature with that of the
bath, the peg is removed, and
at the same time a stopwatch
is started. The flask placed
below the orifice is calibrated
at 100 and 200 ml; the
measurement may be stopped
at one of these marks.
To determine the viscosity of starch, gelatinization is performed by heating a
slurry containing a definite amount of the flour (usually 6 g) in 300 ml of distilled
water at a definite rate with constant and not too vigorous stirring. The temperature
should reach 100C in six to seven minutes. The solution is then transferred
immediately into the inner vessel of the viscometer in the way described above. The
water in the outer vessel being kept boiling during the whole determination. The flow

of the solution into the flask is started when the temperature has reached 94C
during the measurement it usually rises to 96C, a mean temperature of about 95C
prevailing during this period. The time needed for 200 ml (or another definite quantity
of the solution) to flow out divided by the time needed for the same amount of water
at 20C gives the hot-paste viscosity in degrees Engler. In comparing different
samples, the same amount of flour (dry weight) must be
Alkaline viscosity
This is the viscosity of a solution of the flour in a dilute solution of alkali. As
a practical test it has the great advantage of being carried out at room temperature.
Detailed instructions are as follows. A sample of dry flour weighing 3 g is
suspended in 30 ml of water placed in a beaker 600 ml in volume and 7.5 cm in
diameter. The suspension is agitated with a mechanically operated stirrer made from
a glass rod which is bent into a zigzag at the lower end, giving a stirring surface of
approximately 4.5 cm breadth and 7 cm height. The temperature is adjusted to
27.5C and 270 ml of a 1 percent sodium hydroxide solution is added. Stirring at
200 revolutions per minute is continued for three minutes from the moment the
sodium hydroxide is poured in; the mixture is then left to stand in a bath of 27.5C
for 27 minutes; toward the end of this time it is carefully poured into the Engler
viscometer, and the flow of the solution is started after the 27 minutes have elapsed.
Thus, the sodium hydroxide is allowed to act upon the flour for exactly 30 minutes
before the measurement of viscosity is started. The quotient of the time of flow of the
solution (at 27.5C) and that of water (at 20C) is the viscosity (with sodium
hydroxide) of the flour in degrees Engler. The results of alkaline and hot-paste
viscosity generally run parallel.
The disadvantage of both the quantitative methods described above is that
they assess the viscosity of the paste only at a certain point, whereas for many
applications it is important to know the variation in viscosity under specific
circumstances over a definite period of time. This objection is overcome with the
modern recording viscometers, which allow the viscosity values to be followed during
a process using hot paste from room temperature up to about 100C at a rate of
heating which is automatically controlled; the viscosity can also be recorded at any
desired temperature for any additional length of time.
Recording viscometers
Most models are built on the same principle and some of them are available
commercially. They generally consist of a non-corrosive metal cup fitted on an axis
coupled to a strong electric motor, giving the cup a slow rotation at a constant speed.
The actual measuring instrument, in the form of a rod with side arms, is fixed on a
shaft aligned with the axis of the cup and is suspended in the liquid to be tested.
Heating is furnished by the radiation from coils placed in the housing around the
cup.
For the measurement of viscosity the cup is filled with a slurry of definite
composition at room temperature (25C), and the heating and rotation are switched
on simultaneously. The rate of heating is generally controlled at 1.5C per minute.
The drag exerted by the contents of the cup on the measuring rod is balanced by a
calibrated spring or a counterweight, and the deviation of the rod from its free
position is transmitted to a lever with pencil affixed which records the flow resistance
on a chart on a revolving drum. After reaching 90C the heating is automatically
switched over to constant temperature. The possibility of recording viscosity at falling
temperatures is provided by water-fed cooling coils.

The form of the viscogram obtained is more or less characteristic for the starch
investigated; in general, the viscosity attains a peak value and then slowly falls off.
The maximum value and the other features of the curve serve as a basis for grading.
Since the dimensions of the curve depend on the construction details of the
apparatus, the viscometer has to be calibrated with standard flours of known quality.
ASH
The amount of inorganic constituents present, as measured by the ash
content, can be considered an indication of clean processing and, in conjunction with
the acid factor (see below), conveys an impression of the quantity of metal ions bound
to the raw starch. The colour of the ash is also of interest, as an off-colour indicates
the presence of objectionable elements (e.g., brown-red from iron).
MOISTURE
Determination of moisture by the oven method, though simple to perform,
requires many weighings and is otherwise rather lengthy. Moreover, the results tend
to be low in a highly humid surrounding atmosphere such as is likely to occur in
tropical regions.
A more rapid method, free from these objections, consists in boiling a sample
with xylene (boiling point 135C) and collecting the water driven out in the form of
vapour, which separates from the xylene after condensation in a graduated tube.
In the oven method, the starch sample is placed at a depth of less than 2 mm
from the bottom in a receptacle with a tight-fitting cover and weighed. With the cover
removed' it is heated in a vacuum oven at 105C under a pressure of about 25 mm
until a constant weight is obtained. The loss in weight during the heating period is
considered equal to the moisture content.
The moisture contents specified for the A, B and C grades in the present
system are difficult to obtain in most of the producing areas. The starch leaves the
medium-size factories and the bolting installations with a moisture content generally
over IS percent, but during shipping moisture declines a few percent. If the moisture
content is high, there is a likelihood of mould growth.
ACIDITY
This test is of considerable interest to manufacturers of dextrin from cassava.
The titration required in the determination of the acid factor is a measure of the acidbinding capacity of the flour. As most dextrins are prepared with the addition of acid,
it is understandable that the acid factor should be of prime importance in the
conversion of starch to dextrin. It has been found that a smooth course of
dextrinization requires an acid factor of between 2.0 and 2.5.
The initial pH, apart from its role as a starting point in the determination of
the acid factor' may be used as an indication of the presence of moulds or other
impurities in the flour: low pH values indicate deterioration. The amount of acid
present is often determined by separate titration of a sample suspended in alcohol
with dilute alkali solutions.
NITROGEN
Nitrogenous bodies are usually determined by the Kjeldahl method. A sample
of about 3-5 g is digested in a Kjeldahl flask by boiling it in 25 ml of concentrated
sulphuric acid and about 0.2 g of copper sulphate as catalyst. Boiling is continued
for 30 minutes after clarification of the reaction. The flask is cooled, and the contents
are diluted in 200 ml of water, with a few pieces of granulated zinc and 25 ml of 4
percent sodium sulphide solution added. About 50 ml of 45 percent sodium

hydroxide solution is cautiously run down the side of the flask, which is then
connected to a condenser. The outlet of the condenser should extend into a vessel
containing a measured quantity of standard acid solution. The flask is gently shaken
to mix the contents and heat is applied to distil the ammonia from the reaction flask
into the acid solution.
The excess acid in the receiver is titrated with standard sodium hydroxide
solution, using methyl red as an indicator. After a determination of the amount of
ammonia distilled and calculation of the results as nitrogen, it is common practice
to report values as percent protein by multiplying the percentage of nitrogen by the
factor 6.25.
Analysis of baked products
These partly gelatinized products are always consumed in cooked form - in
soups, puddings and so on. Consequently, their behaviour in contact with cold water
and during gelatinization in boiling water is the best criterion of quality. The tests
and specifications given below are the result of long experience in the trade of these
commodities. They are particularly directed to the swelling capacity and stability of
the structure of the pearls in cold water and during cooking. A determination of the
treatable acidity is added as a test of durability.
COLD SWELLING TEST
Ten grams of the material are placed in a graduated 100-ml cylinder and the
bulk volume is noted. The cylinder is then filled with water, and after standing 24
hours the volume of the swollen beads is determined. A high swelling power is
preferable, though definite values are not given.
COOKING TEST FOR PEARLS AND SEEDS
Three and a half grams of the material are added to 200 ml of boiling water,
and boiling is continued for two minutes. After cooling for 30 minutes, the contents
of the beaker are heated again to boiling point, with a low flame, and boiling is
continued for another 30 seconds. Then the liquid is left to cool for half an hour and
transferred to a graduated cylinder. After settling, the total volume of the swollen
product is read. Generally, part of the original beads will have disintegrated; the
volume of these fragments which form a layer of "slime" on top of the swollen whole
beads is noted separately. The market demands rapid swelling with a minimum of
disintegration during cooking, and a large volume after the second cooking. Normally'
the volume of the whole beads is more than 8 ml per gram of starting material and
the slime layer less than 4 ml per gram.
TITRATABLE ACIDITY
Five grams of the material, obtained by grinding the product in a disintegrator
with a 150-mesh sieve, are mixed with 100 ml of alcohol which has been neutralized,
using phenolphthalein as an indicator. The mixture is left to stand, with occasional
stirring, for 24 hours. It is then poured on a dry filter and 50 ml of filtrate are titrated
with N/10 sodium hydroxide, I ml of the reagent corresponding to an acidity of 0.24
percent calculated as acetic acid. Normally, less than 0.05 percent is found.
Specifications for particular uses
Specifications of starch are being developed rapidly and analysis of
commercial starches is becoming more and more necessary for both the producer
and the consumer. The general specification system just reviewed does not cover all
the properties which may be of interest for particular end uses. An instructive
example is to be found in the specifications for dextrin from cassava as used in

remoistening gum (Appendix 2). Though much depends on the performance of the
dextrinization, it may be assumed that only certain varieties of the basic material will
meet these requirements. Cassava dextrin is preferred in remoistening gums for
stamps, envelope flaps and so on because of its adhesive properties and its agreeable
taste and odour.
Requirements surpassing by far the specifications system of the Tapioca
Institute of America are found also in the food industry.
Standards, grades and methods of analysis for starch and starch products
have been established during the last two decades by the International Organization
for Standardization. Some leading food corporations in the United States have also
developed their own specifications in order to bring about some uniformity of quality
in cassava products (Appendix 3).

8. World production and trade of cassava products

Cassava is grown in many tropical countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America.
Most statistics do not usually distinguish between sweet and bitter varieties; in some,
sweet varieties are not included as they are commonly grown as a secondary crop for
home consumption. The world production of cassava roots in 1973 (excluding China)
is shown in Table 12. Brazil is the largest producer, but most of the crop is consumed
locally and exports are only a small portion of the total output. The same pattern
applies to other important producers, such as Nigeria, Indonesia, Zaire, India and
Colombia. Cassava does not form an important part of the staple diet in Thailand,
and that country is now the world's largest exporter of cassava products. In the last
few years most of the important producers have greatly increased their production.
Surplus production of cassava products enters international trade in different
forms, such as chips, broken dried roots, meal and flour and tapioca starch. Dried
cassava roots and meal are used as raw material for compound animal feed, while
cassava starch is used for industrial purposes; grocery tapioca is used solely for
human consumption.
Exports
The principal markets for cassava products are in Europe - the European
Economic Community being the most important for dried roots - and for cassava
starch the United States, the United Kingdom and Japan. Although complete
statistics of world trade in cassava products are not available, thus making it difficult
to estimate the total quantity entering international trade, the import statistics of the
EEC and the United States show a substantial increase in recent years, particularly
for dried cassava roots.
Table 13 shows exports of cassava products in 1973 in comparison with the
production of cassava roots in some of the major exporting countries, except
Indonesia, for which figures were not available.
TABLE 12. - WORLD PRODUCTION OF CASSAVA ROOTS IN 1973 (IN THOUSAND TONS)
South America
Argentina
Bolivia
Brazil
Colombia
Ecuador
Paraguay
Peru
Venezuela

177
245
26559
1320
400
1108
482
272

Asia
China (Province of Taiwan)
India
Indonesia
Malaysia
Philippines
Sri Lanka
Thailand
Viet Nam

328
6371
11185
239
480
616
6416
380

Africa
Angola
Benin
Cameroon
Central African Empire
Congo
Ghana
Guinea
Ivory Coast
Liberia
Madagascar
Malawi
Mali
Mozambique
Niger
Nigeria
Senegal
Tanzania
Togo
Zaire
Total

SOURCE: FAO, Production Yearbook 1974. Revised Series, Rome, 1975.

1630
700
719
1100
590
1660
420
625
250
1175
150
120
2 500
156
9 600
122
3 350
517
8 595
90457

Dried cassava roots, however, are supplied to the European Economic

Community countries mainly by a few exporting countries (see Table 14).
Imports
The following are the largest importers of cassava products:
1. United States. The present annual consumption of all starch products in the
United States is about 3 million metric tons. Cassava starch comprises about
1.5 percent of all commercial starch consumed and is imported from many
countries, but mainly Thailand and Brazil. The rest of the consumption is,
however, almost all corn (maize) starch. The rising utilization of starches is
the result of population growth' new applications of the starch and the growth
of certain industries which use starch, particularly the paper industry.
TABLE 13. - EXPORTS OF CASSAVA PRODUCTS AND PRODUCTION OF ROOTS, 1972'

Exports
Brazil
Thailand
Madagascar
Togo
Angola
Malaysia (West)

Production of roots
Thousand tons
21
1834
4
5
2
29

26559
6416
1175
517
1630
239

TABLE 14. - MAJOR EXPORTERS OF CASSAVA ROOTS TO SOME MEMBERS OF THE

EUROPEAN ECONOMIC COMMUNITY, 1973

Importing countries
Exporting countries
Thailand
Indonesia
Tanzania
China
Mozambique
Malawi
Total

Germany F.R.
The Netherlands
Belgium
Percent of imports of dried roots
70.0
95.0
60.0
3.1
3.8
21.0
1.5
20.0
1.3
3.3
99.2
98.8
81.0

Cassava starch enters free of duty and its importance on the U.S. market is
dependent on its price relative to that of corn (maize) starch and potato starch.
TABLE 15. - IMPORTS OF CASSAVA STARCH BY SELECTED COUNTRTES, 1973

Importing countries United States United Kingdom Canada France Japan Total
Exporting countries
Metric tons
Thailand
42778
17 3085
45880
Brazil
5331
2407
7738
Malaysia (West)
164
2470
472
527
3633
India
36
36
Nigeria
18
18
Dominican Republic
14
14
Colombia
8
8
Canada1
774
774

Hong Kong1
The Netherlands1
United States
Togo
Madagascar
Others
Total

17
135
1033

49123

2470

17
135
3 1036
3502
3329
128
3 66248

3502
3329
128
4081 10571

Re-exporters
SOURCE: National trade statistics.
1

TABLE 16. - IMPORTS OF CASSAVA CHIPS AND MEAL OF SOME EEC COUNTRIES

1965
Germany, F.R
The Netherlands
Belgium
France
Italy
Total

520
76
100
17
1
714

1970
1971
Thousand tons
591
529
502
514
268
204
35
40
14 _
_
1410
1287

1972

1973

487
681
330
141

410
771
420
163
_

1639

1764

SOURCE: National trade statistics

2. United Kingdom. The United Kingdom's imports of cassava and sageo starches
amount to about 2 500 tons per year and are used in food preparation rather
than for industrial purposes.
3. Japan. Japan is potentially an important market for cassava starch because
the price of locally produced starch is high and the traditional production of
sweet potato and white potato starch is decreasing. The local production is
about 800 000 tons a year of a national consumption of 1.3 million tons of
starch. However, imports of cassava starch (56 000 tons in 1967) are now
non-existent owing to the competition of corn (maize) starch.
Japan is fast becoming an important new market for cassava chips and meal,
as there has been an increasing, demand for raw material for the compound
feedstuff industry. However, the general policy in the country is to import raw
materials rather than finished products in order to encourage local industries.
In addition, the Government imposes a quota system on imports and an
import duty of 25 percent on all cassava products.
4. European Economic Community. The international demand for cassava
products for animal feed is concentrated in Western Europe and the European
Economic Community, especially the Federal Republic of Germany. As these
countries have the most developed compound animal feed industries, and as
prices of feed grains have been increasing, they are considered the major
outlet for exporting countries of cassava products (Table 16).
Total consumption of animal feed is based on the number of livestock and the
consumption per head of the livestock. Between 1965 and 1970 the number of
livestock did not increase significantly in the major EEC countries, as shown in Table
17; however, the consumption per head has been continually increasing as a result

of changes in feeding methods. The figures in Table 18 represent the rates of increase
of compound feed consumption per animal between 1965 and 1970.
The figures in Table 18 reflect exactly the stages of development in the use of
compound animal feedstuff. In the Netherlands, the most advanced country in this
field, the rates of increase of compound feedstuff consumption per head are small
and there is even a decline in some uses (pigs and poultry); however, in the Federal
Republic of Germany, France and Italy the rates of increase are very high and will
continue to be so until the consumption per head reaches the present level of
consumption in the Netherlands.
TABLE 17. - ANNUAL RATE OF INCREASE IN NUMBER OF LIVESTOCK IN SOME EEC
COUNTRIES, 1965 - 70

Germany F.R.
Cattle
Pigs
Poultry

The Netherlands Belgium- Luxembourg

Percent

1.6
2.7
7.2

2.5
12.5
4.3

1.4
14.5
7

France

Italy

1.6
3.2
-2.3

1.6
14
2.3

SOURCE: FAO, Production Yearbook, Rome, 1973

TABLE 18. - ANNUAL RATE OF INCREASE OF COMPOUND FEED CONSUMPTION PER
HEAD IN SOME EEC COUNTRIES, 1965 - 70

Germany F R.
Cattle
Pigs
Poultry

The Netherlands Belgium- Luxembourg France Italy

Percent
8.0
5.8
3.1
8.2 24.0
8.8
-1.0
2.5
6.0 -4.5
2.0
-3.5
3.6
4.4 10.0

SOURCE: FAO, Production Yearbook, Rome, 1973

Distribution and transport

Trade in cassava products is handled by shippers, importers and agents.
Some importers are also agents who act on behalf of foreign suppliers and conduct
their business on a commission basis in order to lessen the risks.
Freight rates for bulk pellets are much lower than those for chips in bulk and
other products. During transport, especially on long voyages, deterioration caused
by moulding, heating and sweating may be a problem.
Recommendations
The compound feedstuff industries require large quantities of cassava
products. Because of the increasing competition in the production and marketing of
these products, producing countries are advised to take the following
recommendations into consideration:
1. As the economics of international trade require minimum quantities per
shipment, exporters should ensure that regular quantities are available for
year-round export.
2. Each importing country has a minimum quality standard for each product. It
is therefore important that an exporting country establish a quality-control
system to maintain the quality of its exported products. Once an above
standard quality is maintained, the exporter will gain a good reputation and
even receive a premium for his products.

3. Export prices must be based on world market prices. Exporters must always
remain informed of price fluctuations and trends in the international market.
4. Bulk shipment is preferable to transport in bags. It is therefore advisable to
have bulk-loading facilities in the ports of the exporting countries. These
facilities can also be used for other agricultural or mineral products.
5. Exporters must have enough experience in international trade to deal with
experienced and established importers. They can use the experience of
suitable firms or agents in the importing countries to establish good trade
relationships until they acquire the necessary knowledge.

9. Development of the cassava-processing industry and its

future
Particularly in countries where the science of agriculture is not yet developed,
continuous guidance under some type of development scheme is necessary in order
to make the best use of cassava for local consumption and for export. Such a scheme
may be operated through a government organization or through a private
organization advised and in some cases supervised by the government.
The method chosen will depend on local conditions' and it must be realized
that changing existing methods of production and processing will take time in most
areas because of the retarding influence of local customs and beliefs as well as
economic conditions. The scheme outlined below is only a suggestion and obviously
must be adapted to the existing organizational pattern of the government, its
extension services and the extent to which the industry itself is organized.
Production
The initial approach to farmers and merchants should be through practical
field demonstrations at the lowest levels of village production.
In many producing countries, the cassava industry suffers from such
disadvantages as an insufficient and irregular supply of roots to the factories in
addition to the high cost of roots. These countries should encourage research work
with the object of obtaining a maximum yield of roots per hectare and a maximum
starch content in the roots. Experiments should be conducted in various regions for
the improvement of agricultural practices and the breeding of new varieties with
continuous testing and selection for high yields and suitability to local conditions.
The formation of an organization of cassava growers in each region will
encourage production, make possible financial and technical assistance, and help
coordinate the supply of roots to the factories.
Processing and marketing
During the initial stages a competition sponsored by local officials or
merchants with a prize for the best will foster interest in the scheme.
The most propitious occasion on which to inaugurate such a competition
would be one of the many marketing and festival days celebrated in the villages. It
may continue for several months and be open to participants from a number of
villages in cassava-producing areas.
The next step could be the setting up of small cooperative processing units in
areas which are ready for such development, whereby improved machinery and
accessories could be brought into use to obtain a better product. A pilot plant may
be established in each cassava-growing region as a centre for research and

development of the industry, for demonstration of modern processing equipment and

for the training of personnel.
Obviously, under such a development scheme a certain number of officers will
be necessary to guide the programme - at least some instructors and an inspection
officer stationed in the cassava-processing areas.
The instructors should be patient and tactful, as they must remain on good
terms with the workers, and must be capable of good systematic instruction by
practical demonstration.
The duties of an inspector call for an agricultural engineer specialized in
processing with a good general education and practical background and with
administrative experience. He should be senior to and supervisor of the district
instructors.
As cassava is generally grown in rural areas and processed in small factories,
the promotion and guidance of village farmers' cooperatives, not only for processing
but also for grading and marketing, is an important part of the duties of the officers.
Such cooperative societies should be able, in later stages, to deal with products for
export.
Once a start has been made, the establishment of a cassava board composed
of government officers, representatives of farmers' cooperatives and individual factory
owners as well as representatives of merchants and related industries should be
considered. The board should meet regularly to ensure a continuation of useful
contacts and act in an advisory capacity to the government. It can handle problems
of production and marketing of cassava products, open new markets and regulate
prices of various products, provide financial assistance to processors and traders,
maintain quality standards, promote research and the development of new products
and so on.
Future of the cassava industry
FOOD AND NON-FOOD USES
Because starch-derived products are used in almost every industry, the starch
industry itself is vulnerable to competition from more specialized synthetic products.
In the textile, foundry and paper-coating industries, synthetic polymers
present a serious threat to starch products, but they are still expensive. Much work
is therefore being carried out to form products combining starch and synthetic
polymers with the best qualities of both materials. The future of starch utilization in
such industries may be promising if technical efforts continue to make use of the
new synthetic materials rather than compete with them or oppose them. There is no
doubt, however, about the secure future of starch-based products in the food
industry.
The new improved methods of producing glucose syrup and dextrose by
enzymes and by direct conversion from raw materials are going to give sucrose stiff
competition. Furthermore, it has recently been claimed that sucrose consumption
has certain injurious effects on health while starch, starch products and glucose do
not. The utilization of glucose syrup and dextrose is rapidly increasing in the food
industry, and consequently their production from various starches is continuously
expanding.
At present yellow maize is the most important raw material used for starch
production. New waxy maize have been developed with higher amylose content than
and different properties from normal maize. The market position of cassava starch is

believed to depend on the possibility of world industry, particularly in the United

States, developing domestic substitutes from the waxy varieties of grains (maize and
sorghum) and from roots and tubers such as sweet potatoes and white potatoes at
lower cost than that of imported cassava starches.
Growing populations in the cassava-producing countries will continue to
provide a home market for cassava roots and products. Many countries are entering
production, and the international market for many products has become more
competitive. Thus it seems unlikely that European markets will attract a large
volume of exports. However, cassava could make a much more important
contribution to national economies and provide a more stable base for food
industries, both for local consumption and for export, if cassava starch could
compete with other starches by improving the quality of its products and lowering
the cost of production.
BREAD-MAKING
Bread consumption is constantly increasing in many developing countries,
which still depend mostly on imported wheat or wheat flour while they grow various
staples such as starchy tubers like cassava or cereals other than wheat. Recent
experiments show the possibility of partial replacement of wheat flour in breadmaking by other flours (e.g., cassava and soya).
It seems quite logical that the utilization of cassava flour in bread-making will
increase considerably in most developing countries.
ANIMAL FEED
As the standard of living rises the demand for meat and dairy products is also
increasing, especially for quality products. Livestock breeding is progressing rapidly
and significant increases in meat production are foreseen in many countries as
shown in Table 19.
The use of well-balanced compound feedstuffs has proved to be the most
efficient way to meet the shortage of home-grown natural fodder and to increase
efficiency in the raising of milk cows, beef cattle, broilers and laying hens, and pigs.
Many feeding experiments show that cassava provides a good quality carbohydrate
which may be substituted for maize or barley; however, cassava must be
supplemented by other feeds that are rich in protein and vitamins.
TABLE 1 9. - MEAT PRODUCTION IN SELECTED COUNTRIES
Country
France
Germany, F.R
The Netherlands
United Kingdom
Japan
Total

Base year 1969-71

1640
1296
302
818
270
4326

Projection 1975
2071
1502
335
1185
305
5398

SOURCE: FAO, Agricultural commodities projections 1970-1980, revised 1975.

The consumption of cassava products such as dried roots, chips and pellets
by the compound feedstuff industry is expected to increase considerably in the
future: therefore, it is vitally important that producing countries encourage belter
processing and quality control. Furthermore, it is hoped that more attractive markets
for animal feed containing cassava will open up in the producing countries.

Appendixes
Methods and specifications for determining the quality of cassava flours
(Tapioca Institute of America, October 1943)
1. MESH
Apparatus
United States standard sieves, 140, 80 and 60 mesh.
Method
Fifty grams of flour are screened through the appropriate sieve according to grade.
While more accurate results can be obtained by making the test with a Ro-tap
machine (a mechanical shaker of special design) or other type of mechanical shaker,
satisfactory results can be obtained by hand shaking.
Specifications
Grade
A
B
C

Percent required to pass

99
99
95

Mesh sieve to be passed

140
80
60

2. DRY APPEARANCE
Method
A sufficient sample of flour is taken to make a rectangle approximately 2.55
cm (I to 2 inches) on a side and 1.6-3.5 mm (1/16 to 1/8 inch) high. The flour is
placed on a white paper pad, laid out to these measurements with a spatula and one
side evened off. Adjoining this side, a similar pile is made with a standard flour. A
clean smooth piece of paper is laid over both piles and pressed gently with the spatula
to make a smooth upper surface. The two piles are compared by eye in a neutral light
(i.e., by daylight) free from shadows and direct glare.
Specifications
Grade
Colour
Black specks
A
Near standard
Non-e
B
Near standard
Very few
C
Near standard
Few
3. CLEANLINESS
Apparatus
Crystallizing dish 100 mm in diameter and 50 mm deep.
Method
Twenty-five grams of the sample are thoroughly dispersed in 150 ml of distilled
water in the crystallizing dish and allowed to settle for two hours. The sample is
compared against a standard sample for dirt and foreign particles seen from the
underside of the dish and in the floating liquid.
Specifications
Grade
A
B
C

Colour
Near standard
Near standard
Near standard

Dirt, foreign particles

Non-e
Very few
Few

4. PULP
Apparatus
United States standard sieve, 140 mesh
Graduated cylinder, 100 ml
Method
Fifty grams of sample are put on the sieve and washed with water until the
washings show substantially no starch particles. The residue is transferred to a 100ml graduated cylinder and water added to the 100 ml mark. The pulp is allowed to
settle for two hours. The pulp is measured as the number of millilitres of residue.
Specifications
Grade
A
B
C

Pulp (max. in ml)

0.5
2.5
12.0

5. VISCOSITY
Apparatus
Boiling water bath
Short-form Pyrex beakers, 250-ml capacity
Glass rods 1 cm (3/8 inch) in diameter and 20 cm (8 inches) long Thermometers
Method
By the proper amount of flour is meant the following:
As a standard for comparison, the standard for grade A is always cooked with
10 g of flour per 150 g of distilled water. If the sample which is to be graded is thought
to be approximately grade A, then it should be cooked with 11 g of starch per 150 g
of water. If the unknown flour is thought to be grade B. then 17 g should be used. If
the flour is supposed to be grade C, then 20 g should be used. In this way, if the
unknown flour has a higher viscosity than the standard when cooked with 10 g of
flour to 150 g of water, then the unknown flour would be grade A, B or C, according
to the amount of flour used in the viscosity test.
If a more accurate measure of the viscosity is desired, then additional "cookups" should be made in the same manner as above, with the exception that one
should endeavour to find out how much flour is required when cooked with 150 g of
water, in order to obtain the same viscosity as the standard grade A flour when
cooked with 10 g of flour per 150 g of water.
This amount of flour required by the unknown flour would be the measure for
viscosity. For example, if the unknown flour required 13 g per 150 g of water to give
the same viscosity as grade A when cooked with 10 g per 150 g of water, then the
flour in question would be grade B. having a viscosity of 13.
The proper amount of flour is mixed with 150 g of distilled water in a 250 ml
beaker. A rod and a glass thermometer are inserted and the tare is taken. The beaker
is placed in a boiling water bath and the contents stirred with the rod and
thermometer until the temperature reaches 80C. The beaker is covered with a watch
glass and is left in the bath for ten minutes without further stirring. At the end of
this time the beaker and contents are removed from the bath and the loss in moisture
by evaporation is adjusted with hot distilled water. It is then cooled in running water

with a minimum of stirring until the starch solution reaches 25C. The thermometer
is then removed and viscosity comparisons are made by stirring by hand at the rate
of approximately two turns per second, with a roughly circular motion. By observing
the resistance offered to the rod by the starch solution and comparing that resistance
to the standard "cook-up," one can estimate the viscosity of a given sample.
Specifications
Grade
A
B
C

Max- g/ml water

11/150
17/150
20/ 150

6. ASH
Apparatus
Shallow, relatively broad ashing dish
Muffle furnace
Method
Approximately 5 g of flour are weighed into the ashing dish, which has
previously been ignited, cooled and weighed. A sample is inserted in the furnace at
about 500C (dull red) until a light gray ash results, or to constant weight. The
sample is then cooled in a desiccator and weighed.
Specifications
Grade
A
B
C

Max. ash (percent)

0.15
0.25
0.50

7. MOISTURE
Apparatus
Metal dish, 55 ml in diameter, 15 ml in height, provided with inverted slip in cover
fitting tightly on the inside.
Ventilated oven regulated to 130C 5C.
Method
Approximately 5 g of flour are weighed into a dish which has previously been dried
in the oven, cooled, and weighed. The dish is uncovered, and dish, cover and contents
are dried in the oven at 130C 5C for four hours. The dish is covered while still in
the oven and then transferred to the desiccator and weighed when cool. The moisture
is calculated and the loss of weight expressed as a percentage of the original sample.
Specifications
Grade
A
B
C
8. ACIDITY
Apparatus
Electrometric pH meter

Max. moisture (percent, factory packed)

12.5
12.5
14.0

Method
Twenty-five g of flour are dispersed in 50 ml of distilled water. The initial pH
is determined. N/ 10 hydrochloric acid or sulphuric acid is then added to the
suspension until pH 3.0 is reached. The titration is run at room temperature.
Specifications
Grade
A
B
C

Initial pH
4.5-6.5
4.5-6.5
4.5-6.5

Max. ml N/10 acid to reach pH 3.0

2.5
6.0
No titration required

Specifications for dextrin

(Issued by the United States Government Printing Office)
The dextrin shall have been converted from starch derived from the cassava
root. It shall be a high-quality dextrin adapted for use in gumming operations, free
from grit or other foreign matter.
Detailed specifications
Dextrin by polarization
Reducing substance, as dextrose
Volatile at 105C
Ash content
Material insoluble in cold water
Fat content
Polari scope reading, Ventzke, 10 g of dextrin in 100 ml of solution
Refractive index at 25C, 250 g of dextrin plus 125 g of water

Percent
83.0
3.0
6.5
0.2
0.3
0.4
90.6
1.4555

Physical properties
The dextrin shall be in powdered form. After being applied to and dried on the
paper, it must be light in colour, flexible, transparent, and of superior adhesive
qualities. The dextrin must be neutral or have only a slightly acid reaction. It must
have an unobjectionable odour and taste.
The viscosity Engler at 20C of a solution made by dissolving 120 g of dextrin
(including moisture) in 250 g of water shall fall within the range 200250 seconds
when measured after standing for 3, 24 and 48 hours.
General requirements
The dextrin shall be packed
approximately 200 lb. [about 90 kg].

in

tight

paper-lined

bags

containing

Specifications for starch

(Developed by a large food corporation)
1. Appearance and uniformity: Samples of about one teaspoonful from each bag
are examined under a glass plate and compared for colour and specks. The
colour should be uniform, white and free from pigments. The lot is considered
non-uniform if over 10 percent of the samples are darker or have more specks
than the rest.
2. Mesh size: 99 percent of the starch granules must pass through a 100-mesh
screen or 95 percent pass through a 140-mesh screen.

3. Odour: The cooked flour must have a fresh odour, free from any musty or
rancid odour.
4. Moisture content: Not more than 10-13 percent. Moisture content of less than
10 percent indicates severe drying conditions and a possible explosion hazard
during storage. More than 13 percent indicates danger of mould
contamination.
5. Ash content: Not more than 0.2 percent.
6. Protein content: Not more than 0.4 percent.
7. PH value: 4.5-5.5.
8. Viscosity: Must be suitable for both cold flour slurry and cooked starch paste.
Standards for cassava chips and manioc meal in Thailand (Notifications of the
Ministry of Economic Affairs)
Re: Dried tapioca standards
By virtue of the power conferred in Section 4 of the Export Standards Act B.E. 2503,
the Minister of Economic Affairs gives notice as follows:
1. Dried tapioca is declared standard goods.
2. Standards for dried tapioca shall be as specified in the annex hereto.
3. Persons taking or exporting dried tapioca from the Kingdom through the
Bangkok Customs Station, Tah Chalaeb Customs Station, Changvad
Chandaburi or the Klong Yai Customs Station, Changvad Trad, shall produce
a good standard certificate.
4. Standards verification service charges for dried tapioca are prescribed as
follows:
a. for not more than 50 metric tons, not more than 250 baht;
b. For amounts in excess of 50 metric tons, not more than 4 baht per
metric ton.
In the event a sample is analysed, there shall be an additional charge of not
more than 300 baht for verification of its standard.
5. Service charges for the issuance of standard certificates are prescribed as
follows:
a. for not more than 50 metric tons, not more than 20 baht;
b. For amounts in excess of 50 metric tons, not more than 0.40 baht per
metric ton.
Effective from the 1st of September 2506.
Notice given the 30th May 2506 (1962)
KASEM SRIPHAYAK
Minister of Economic Affairs
Dried tapioca standards
1. Definitions:
a. "Dried tapioca" means tapioca root (Manihot utilissima Pohl) dried but
not ground.
b. "Fibre" means that part of the tapioca root which is not tapioca.
c. "Foreign matter" means matter which is not dried tapioca, fibre or sand.
2. Dried tapioca must be light in colour, without admixture of foreign matter and
free of unusual odour.

3. Dried tapioca shall be divided into two grades, the standard for each being
prescribed as follows:
a. Special grade, having a starch, including water-soluble carbohydrate,
content of not less than 72 percent by weight and a moisture content
of not more than 13 percent by weight. If there is sand or fibre it must
not exceed the following rates:
i. sand not more than 2 percent by weight;
ii. Fibre not more than 4 percent by weight.
b. First grade, having a starch, including water-soluble carbohydrate,
content of not less than 70 percent by weight and a moisture content
of not more than 14 percent by weight. If there is sand or fibre it must
not exceed the following rates:
i. sand not more than 2 percent by weight;
ii. Fibre not more than 4 percent by weight.
4. In case of any argument, problem or dispute concerning the colour, the latest
samples established at the Goods Standards Office shall be deemed the
standard.
5. In the event of sale of dried tapioca in accordance with a sample, the standard
of such dried tapioca must not be lower than that of the sample agreed to by
the purchaser and the moisture content must not be higher than 14 percent
by weight. Approval of the Goods Standards Office must be obtained.
6. Packing materials for dried tapioca must be gunny bags in good condition,
suitable for export, free from tears, leaks and bad odour, the mouth sewn with
a doubled hemp cord for sewing gunny bags, at least eleven stitches each way
forward and back.
Re: Manioc meal standards
By virtue of the power conferred in Section 4 of the Export Standards Act B.E. 2503,
the Minister of Economic Affairs issues a notice as follows:
1. Manioc meal standards prescribed in the schedule annexed to the Notification
of the Ministry of Economic Affairs dated the 28th March 2505 Re: Manioc
meal standards are cancelled.
2. Manioc meal standards are as prescribed in the schedule annexed hereto.
Effective from the 1st April 2506.
Published on the 16th January 2506 (1962)
KASEM SRIPHAYAK
Minister of Economic Affairs
Manioc meal standards
1. Definitions
a. "Manioc meal" means the product derived from grinding the root of the
cassava plant (Manihot utilissima Pohl) but shall not include manioc
flour.
b. "Fibre" means that part of the cassava root other than the manioc.
c. "Foreign matter" means substances other than manioc meal, fibre,
sand and moisture.

2. Manioc meal shall be divided into two grades, the standards for maniac meal
of each grade being as follows:
a. Special grade: a soluble flour including carbohydrate content of not less
than 72 percent by weight and
i. Sand not more than 2 percent by weight.
ii. Fibre not more than 4 percent by weight.
iii. Moisture not more than 13 percent by weight.
b. First grade: a soluble flour including carbohydrate content of not less
than 70 percent by weight and
i. Sand not more than 3 percent by weight.
ii. Fibre not more than 5 percent by weight.
iii. Moisture not more than 14 percent by weight.
3. Both grades of manioc meal must be of light colour, have no foreign matter
mixed in and no unusual or bad odour.
4. In the event of differences or a dispute over colour, the latest samples of the
Goods Standards Office shall be taken as the standard.
5. In the event a sale of manioc meal is by sample, the governing standards shall
not be lower than the standard of the sample agreed to by the purchaser and
approved by the Goods Standards Office.
6. Packing materials for manioc meal must be gunny sacks in good condition
suitable for export, free from tears, leaks and bad odour, and the mouth must
be sewn with a double hemp cord for sewing gunny bags, forward and
backward, at least eleven stitches each way.
List of processing equipment for a cassava starch factory producing 24 tons per day

Cleaning of fresh roots

3
1
1
1
1
1

belt conveyors with suitable gear motors and supports for transporting the roots
rotating root washer with gear motor
root breaker with motor for chopping washed roots
bucket conveyor with gear motor
pre-grater with motor
pump with stainless steel rotor and motor

Extraction of starch
3 sets of extractors with sieves and motors or a set of DSM screens for the separation
of starch from fibres
2 screw conveyors with gear motors for grated material
4 pumps with stainless steel rotor and motor
Purification of starch
3 centrifugal separators or continuous channel separators with motors or Dorr
Cloves
3 stainless steel stirrers with gear motors for the agitation of starch milk in basins
3 pumps with stainless steel rotors and motors

Dewatering and drying of starch

1 rotary vacuum filter with vacuum pump and motors or basket centrifuge
1 flesh drier complete with steam heating, pneumatic cooking system, ventilation,
insulation, supports and motors
3 screw conveyors with gear motors
2 bucket-type elevators with gear motors
1 warm blending machine with conical mixer and gear motor
1 sifter and motor
1 sack-filling screw with two sack-filling sockets equipped with motors
Sulphurous acid plant
1
1
1
1
1

air compressor with motor

sulphur burning furnace with filler cap and water cooling
absorption tower (wood or ceramics)
storage tank (wood or concrete)
stainless steel pump with motor

Water supply and piping

Drilling of two artesian wells
2 centrifugal pumps for well water
Piping inside factory (includes valves, fittings and condenser line for boiler)
Material handling equipment
2 storage tanks for fuel oil
2 platform scales for roots and starch fork-lift truck and handcarts
Other
Packaged boiler to supply steam for drying starch
Power generation (stand-by unit)
Electrical installation, including switch gear, power distribution, transformer
Outside lines for water, power and sewage
Maintenance shop equipment
Quality control laboratory equipment
Trucks for transporting roots and starch