ABSTRACT

Three samples of mature and immature plantain (Musa paradisiacal) ripen under normal ambient condition (room temperature), sack storage and with acetylene gas. The mature plantain acetylene gas sample took 7 days to ripen, the sack storage mature plantain sample 5 days and the control sample which was the ambient condition sample took 5 days to ripen while the immature plantain acetylene gas treated sample took 5 days to ripen, sack storage immature plantain sample took 3 days to ripen and the ambient condition immature plantain sample 3 days to ripen, after which they were sun-dried and milled. The mature and immature flour samples were analysed for their proximate composition and functional properties having the following proximate composition result range (9.665-10.370) for moisture content, (2.740-3.170) for ash, (1.640-l.910)for crude fibre, (3.820-13.265) for ester extract, (3.705-4.080) for crude protein, (68.485-77.310) for carbohydrate. The control sample (ambient condition mature plantain flour sample) shown more significance difference than sack storage and acetylene treated gas sample among the mature plantain flour samples, while among the immature flour samples acetylene gas treated sample shown more significance difference than sack storage sample and ambient condition sample. The functional properties had the following result range of (1.890-2.420) for swollen index, (4.465-4.665) for water absorption capacity, (1.610-1.940) for oil absorption capacity. The mature plantain flour sample shown more significance difference than sack storage and acetylene gas treated sample while among the immature samples acetylene gas treated sample shown more significance difference than sack storage sample and ambient condition sample.