International Research Conference of UWU-2021
Permanent URI for this collection
Browse
Browsing International Research Conference of UWU-2021 by Author "Abesinghe, A.M.N.L."
Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
Results Per Page
Sort Options
Item Analysis of Consumption Patterns of Probiotic Incorporated Fermented Dairy Products in Sri Lanka(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Hanouf, M.H.M.; Rathnayaka, S.D.; Abesinghe, A.M.N.L.Probiotic dairy foods are considered as one of the major functional food substances in the world. Consumers have been more health conscious in recent years, and as a result, they are seeking more information on how to live a healthy life consuming good food. Probiotic and probiotic products are having the possibility to attract those health-conscious consumers because of their health promoting effects and lower cost. To our knowledge there are no studies that analyze the consumer demand for probiotic fermented dairy products in Sri Lanka. This study focused on analyzing the consumer knowledge, attitudes, socio-demographic and economic factors that affect the consumption pattern of probiotic fermented dairy products in Sri Lanka. A total of 405 households from all nine provinces in Sri Lanka were surveyed with an online questionnaire. According to the results, 46% of the respondents have awareness of probiotics. Probiotic consumption was categorized into 4 levels as not at all, low, medium, and high based on the probiotic consumption per week. The study showed that 53% of the respondents belongs to low-level consumption category, 27% have medium level consumption, 9% are in high-level consumption category and 11% of the responders never consumed probiotic incorporated dairy products. An ordered logistic regression model was employed to analyze the relationships between probiotic consumption level and the number of demographics, socio- economic characteristics of consumers such as gender, age, marital status, household size, presence of children, household income, locality, education level, attitudes on health and nutrition aspects, attitude on sensory aspects, advertisement aspects and poor availability of probiotic dairy products. The results reveal that probiotic consumption level is significantly and positively influenced by gender, marital status, household income, advertisements, and consumer‟s attitude on health and negatively influenced by household size and poor availability. Findings of this study give useful information to producers for their production and marketing strategies which are most suitable to fit with the demand characteristics and consumer expectations. Keywords: Probiotic; Dairy Products; Consumption Patterns; Ordered Logistic Regression; Sri LankaItem Effect of Feeding Silage Incorporated Ration on Production Performances of Temperate Crossbred Dairy Cows in Dry Zone of Sri Lanka(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Priyankara, D.M.; Silva, K.F.S.T.; Mudannayake, D.C.; Abesinghe, A.M.N.L.; Rajapaksha, R.M.C.L.; Epa, A.; Ranaweera, K.K.T.N.Forage scarcity during the drought seasons has a negative impact on productivity of dairy cows reared in the Dry Zone of Sri Lanka. Therefore, utilization of conserved forages (i.e., silage) was identified as a reliable solution for this. Current study was conducted to assess the effect of commercially available silage on production performances and profitability of temperate crossbred dairy cows reared in Dry Zone, Sri Lanka. Fourteen multiparous, temperate crossbred (Jersey Friesian) dairy cows with 430.1 ± 4.01 kg average body weight were used for the experiment. Cows were divided in to two groups considering the provision of a forage-based ration (Control) and a forage & silage (30% fresh matter) mixed ration (Treatment). Silage utilized in the study was a commercially available corn-based silage product. Cows were fed for 5 weeks during the months of February and March. The experiment was on a randomized complete block design with two treatments (i.e., forage-based diet alone and forage & silage mixed diet) and the lactation stage was considered in blocking the animals (early lactation and mid lactation). Body weight, fresh matter intake, individual milk yields were recorded. Ration samples were collected and analyzed for dry matter, ash, crude protein, crude fat, acid detergent fiber content and neutral detergent fiber content. Benefit Cost ration (B:C Ratio) was calculated to assess the profitability of the feeding regimens. Cows fed with corn silage had recorded significantly higher (P<0.05) per day milk production compared to cows did not receive a corn silage-based ration. As such, silage feeding resulted 23.57 L/cow higher (P<0.05) cumulative milk production at five weeks compared to their counterparts (104.96 vs. 81.39 L/cow). Silage feeding did not indicate any significant (P>0.05) effect on fresh matter intake and body weight gain of the experimental cows. Further, both control and treatment rations indicated B:C ratios higher than one (01) throughout the experimental period. It indicted that both rations were profitable to be utilized in proper circumstances. Considering the increment of milk production and the profitability, silage feeding could be recommended as a promising solution for forage scarcity faced by dairy farmers during the drought seasons. Keywords: Corn silage; Dairy cows; Drought season; Milk productionItem Effect of Gamma-Irradiation on Microbiological and Physiochemical Properties of Ceylon Cinnamon (Cinnamomum zeylanicum) Powder(Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, 2021) Chandrasekara, T.K.V.V.; Abesinghe, A.M.N.L.Ceylon cinnamon (Cinnamomum zeylanicum), commonly known as the “True cinnamon” has dominated the international spice market due to its high cinnamaldehyde content, strong aroma and rich flavor. Sri Lanka is the leading producer and exporter of Ceylon cinnamon. The initial microbial load in spices and herbs, in particular spore-forming bacteria, could be a serious threat for the hygienic safety of final processed products. Gamma-irradiation is a novel technique and it is more effective than ethylene oxide fumigation for sanitation of spices in controlling microbial contamination without adverse effect. Therefore, the present study was carried out to evaluate the effects of different doses of gamma-irradiation on microbiological and physiochemical properties as total plate count (TPC), yeast and mold count (YMC), total flavonoid content, total phenolic content, reducing sugar content, antioxidant activity, pH, color and water activity of Ceylon cinnamon. Cinnamon samples were collected from the local market and subjected to five doses of irradiation as 1, 3, 5, 7 and 10 KGy using an industrial Co60 gamma irradiation source. Non-irradiated cinnamon sample was used as the control. There was a significant reduction (100%) in TPC and YMC with increasing the irradiation dose up to 10 kGy. Results of physiochemical properties, antioxidant activity and color values did not showed significant difference in treatments and control samples. However, significantly lower levels of total flavonoid content, total phenolic content and reducing sugar content were observed in treatment with 10 kGy irradiation dose compared to control. The proximate composition of cinnamon treated with 10 kGy did not showed any significant differences in crude protein, crude fat, crude fiber and ash content compared to control while moisture content was significantly lower than the control. In conclusion, the 10 kGy gamma-irradiation dose was not adversely affected on quality of Ceylon cinnamon. Keywords: Spices; Ceylon cinnamon; Gamma-irradiation; Dose