Implementation of kilishi’s Construction Quality by the Savannahs Northern Cameroon Production Actors

Abstract

Kilishi, a snack food made from strips of meat seasoned with a cocktail of ingredients, dried and/or grilled, represents one of the traditional forms of meat preservation practiced in the savannah areas of Africa. This food, highly prized for its organoleptic qualities, has high commercial potential, estimated at approximately 8 billion CFA francs in Cameroon and 40 billion CFA francs in the Lake Chad region if technological improvements are made. While several scientific studies have focused on the drying, health, and nutritional quality of kilishi, the construction of product quality by production actors has not generated much scientific interest. This study was initiated with the aim of highlighting the approach taken by 30 production actors to construct the quality of kilishi. The analysis of the technical practice highlights an exclusively male activity, carried out globally at over 80% by the Hausa. The involvement of actors in the kilishi’s production activity is mainly driven by its family character, secondarily associated with the market potential. Based on the main descriptor of meat, tenderness, the stakeholders of the kilishi technical system preferentially choose 06 muscles (Eye round, Topside, Walnut cottage, Knuckle, Rib eye, Scoter). Unwinding constitutes the essential component of know-how in the production of kilishi and is the major constraint of the process, followed by the technological quality of the meat. The actors implement quality indicators throughout the kilishi manufacturing process (technological quality of the meat, low susceptibility to rancidity, thinness of the strips, low density of holes, texture of the strips, color of the strips, compliance with the dosage of spices, softening of the dry strips, characteristic color, flavor, friability of the kilishi). All of this reflects their approach to developing the final quality of kilishi, characterized by its flavor, texture (tenderness, friability, spice adherence, low hole density), and shelf life.