The purpose of this study was to evaluate the flavour profile and consumer acceptability of four sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam.) cultivars that differed in β-carotene content. Descriptive sensory profiles of the sweetpotato cultivars were determined using a sensory panel. Consumers in the Lake Zone of Tanzania comprised school children (n = 94) and mothers with preschool children (n = 59). Additionally, mothers gave acceptability scores for how they perceived their children's acceptance. Traditional pale-fleshed (PFSP) and high-β-carotene orange-fleshed (OFSP) sweetpotato cultivars showed distinct differences in sensory profile. Mean consumer responses indicated that OFSP were more acceptable than PFSP; mothers differed from school children by giving higher acceptance scores. Mothers did not score the perceived acceptability for their preschool children different from themselves. Segmentation appeared to suggest three distinct patterns of consumer acceptability among school children and mothers. The majority gave high acceptability scores to both OFSP and PFSP. Those in the smaller second group gave higher scores to OFSP than to PFSP, while those (particularly school children) in the third segment gave lower scores to the OFSP cultivar Karote DSM. There was evidence that school children and mothers viewed the sweetpotato cultivars differently with respect to fibrous texture. A preliminary storage trial where the sweetpotato cultivars were kept for 12 weeks in pit structures indicated that the acceptability and sensory profile of the cultivars did not differ with storage.

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Sweetpotato is an important staple crop in East Africa with great potential for introducing improved cultivars, but little is known about which sensory characteristics are desirable. Over a 2 year period, 600 consumers were interviewed at three locations (urban and rural) in the Lake Zone of Tanzania and their preference of 14 locally available sweetpotato cultivars in cooked form was evaluated. A simple questionnaire based on consumers first-choice preference was used followed by socio-economic questions. A trained sensory panel profiled the cooked sweetpotato samples, enabling comparisons with preference, location and season. Cluster analysis based on the sensory attributes was used to classify the cultivars into three groups; one cluster comprised the most preferred cultivars and another contained the least. Some cultivars were consistently preferred over the 2 year period while others were not. The location where the cultivars were grown also influenced preference. Stepwise regression indicated that the most discriminating sensory attributes were starch and stickiness. Target levels based on the mean intensity scores of these attributes are suggested as a means of screening new cultivars. The implications of these findings are discussed.

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Methods for sweet potato storage, previously developed at a research station, were tested on‐farm by subsistence farmers in Lake Zone, Tanzania. On‐farm testing confirmed that the methods were suitable but indicated that practical and simple improvements were necessary, without which losses in the proportion of market‐quality roots from the store could be as high as 79%. These practical improvements were mainly concerned with the position of stores on the farms. The addition of a new step, dehaulming, improved the recovery of market‐quality roots by 48%. However, although the storage methods were developed in order to improve farmer income, most farmers said they would use the stored roots as a subsistence staple for household food security. Variations among the farmers in their attitudes to storing sweet potato suggest that, when transferring methods from the research station to the farm, it is necessary to target those most able to adopt the approach. Additionally, the farmers considered that local market traders may not be keen to sell stored roots. Therefore, other actors in the value chain, such as market traders and consumers, ought to be included in the process of transferring methods from the research station to the farm. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd