Assessment of some quality parameters and chemometric-assisted FTIR spectral analysis of commercial powdered ginger products on the Ghanaian market

Isaac Kingsley Amponsah; Abena Boakye; Emmanuel Orman; Francis Ackah Armah; Lawrence Sheringham Borquaye; Silas Adjei; Yaa Afrakoma Dwamena; Kennedy Ameyaw Baah; Benjamin Kingsley Harley

doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e09150

Assessment of some quality parameters and chemometric-assisted FTIR spectral analysis of commercial powdered ginger products on the Ghanaian market

Heliyon. 2022 Mar 22;8(3):e09150. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e09150. eCollection 2022 Mar.

Authors

Isaac Kingsley Amponsah¹, Abena Boakye², Emmanuel Orman³, Francis Ackah Armah⁴, Lawrence Sheringham Borquaye⁵, Silas Adjei⁶, Yaa Afrakoma Dwamena¹, Kennedy Ameyaw Baah⁵, Benjamin Kingsley Harley⁷

Affiliations

¹ Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana.
² Department of Food Science and Technology, Faculty of Biosciences, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Ghana.
³ Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, School of Pharmacy, University of Health and Allied Sciences, Ho, Ghana.
⁴ Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Allied Sciences, College of Health and Allied Health Sciences, University of Cape Coast, Ghana.
⁵ Department of Chemistry, College of Science, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana.
⁶ Department of Herbal Medicine, Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana.
⁷ Department of Pharmacognosy and Herbal Medicine, School of Pharmacy, University of Health and Allied Sciences, Ho, Ghana.

Abstract

Background: Zingiber officinale Roscoe (ginger) rhizome is a global spice with marked pharmacological activities and industrial applications. The demand for the powdered spice soared in the wake of the COVID-19 global pandemic. The present study sought to assess powdered ginger products on the Ghanaian market for some quality parameters and compare their chemical composition via chemometric analysis of their FT-IR data.

Methods: A survey was conducted in three major markets in Ghana to determine the commercially available powdered ginger products. These products were purchased and assessed for microbial load, heavy metals contents and ash values using official methods. Also, principal component and hierarchical cluster analysis, as multivariate algorithms, were applied to their FT-IR spectral fingerprints, using Z. officinale, Z. zerumbet and some dried ginger rhizomes from Nigeria as reference samples.

Results: Seven products were found in the survey: three local and four foreign. The local products failed to meet regulatory label requirements. The microbial load, heavy metals and ash values of all commercial samples were generally within specifications except for the aerobic bacterial counts of some local samples. Pharmacopoeial identity test and the chemometric analysis revealed all the products to contain Z. officinale. The reference ginger sample from Nigeria also demonstrated some level of similarity with Z. officinale. The variations in physical attributes and slight difference in chemical composition of the different products was presumed to be due to chemical changes arising from different processing methods and possible adulteration with other flours.

Conclusion: The sampled ginger products on the market originate from Z. officinale and have quality attributes that make them suitable for food and medicinal applications. The observed deviations, however, suggest an urgent need for standardized processing methods to ensure consistency in quality indices, as well as regular quality checks by regulatory bodies.

Keywords: COVID-19; Microbes; Multivariate analysis; Spices; Toxic metals; Zingiber officinale.