Consumer awareness and preference to spices used in meat products

Spices are parts of plants used for their properties to preserve, colour or as medicine. Spices used in processed meat products were identified, described and studied for consumer awareness and preference. Information was obtained through a survey of processed meat product producers, spice merchants and processed meat consumers in Sokoto metropolis. Cluster sampling was used to select spice merchants in Sokoto central market. Snowball and multistage sampling were used to select the processed meat products producers and consumers respectively. The spices identified were ginger, garlic, chilli, nutmeg, black pepper, cloves and alligator pepper. The proportion of the spices used in a spice mix was found to follow the order ginger>chilli>garlic>nutmeg> black pepper >cloves and alligator pepper. Awareness and preference of spices were found to follow the order ginger>garlic>nutmeg> black pepper >cloves>chilli> alligator pepper. Preference for spices differed (P<۰.۰۵) in all except for chilli and cloves (P>۰.۰۵) which were preferred equally. There was a positive relationship between awareness and preference.Spices are parts of plants used for their properties to preserve, colour or as medicine. Spices used in processed meat products were identified, described and studied for consumer awareness and preference. Information was obtained through a survey of processed meat product producers, spice merchants and processed meat consumers in Sokoto metropolis. Cluster sampling was used to select spice merchants in Sokoto central market. Snowball and multistage sampling were used to select the processed meat products producers and consumers respectively. The spices identified were ginger, garlic, chilli, nutmeg, black pepper, cloves and alligator pepper. The proportion of the spices used in a spice mix was found to follow the order ginger>chilli>garlic>nutmeg> black pepper >cloves and alligator pepper. Awareness and preference of spices were found to follow the order ginger>garlic>nutmeg> black pepper >cloves>chilli> alligator pepper. Preference for spices differed (P<۰.۰۵) in all except for chilli and cloves (P>۰.۰۵) which were preferred equally. There was a positive relationship between awareness and preference.