PRESERVATIVE EFFECT OF CINNAMON AND NUTMEG ON STRAWBERRY JAM (SENSORY PARAMETER FORMING A MATHEMATICAL MODEL USING WEIBULL DISTIBUTION)

ABSTRACT This study investigated the preservative effect of cinnamon and nutmeg on strawberry jam, with a focus on sensory attributes modeled using the Weibull distribution. A total of 150 respondents participated in the sensory evaluation, all of whom completed structured questionnaires. Socio demographic analysis revealed that respondents were predominantly female (62.7%), single (94.0%) and within the 18-24 year age range (65.3%). Most participants were final-year Higher National Diploma students (52.0%) are full-time student (88.0%) reflecting a yough, educated population with potential familiarity with food products. Four jam samples were evaluated a control (homemade without preservatives), store-bought jam, cinnamon-enhanced jam, and nutmeg-enhanced jam. Sensory attributes assessed included taste, colour, aroma, texture, and overall acceptability. The results showed that cinnamon-enhanced jam exhibited the highest acceptability across all parameters, with Weibull model parameters indicating strong consumer preference (a> 2 and B= 8). Nutmeg-enhanced jam demonstrated moderate acceptance, performing better than the control but lower that the cinnamon sample. Store-bought jam showed acceptable consumer preference but consistently lagged behind the cinnamon-enhanced jam. The control sample recorded a< 1 in most attributes, indicating weak acceptance and early rejection by consumer. Cinnamon significantly improved sensory quality and consumer acceptability, highlighting its potential as an effective natural preservative for strawberry jam. Nutmeg also enhanced sensory attributes but to a lesser degree. The study concludes that cinnamon is the most preferred natural preservative, offering both sensory enhancement and potential shelf-life improvement. It is recommended for natural food processing application to replace synthetic preservatives.