IJFR 2 (2015) 1-11 ISSN 2056-9734 Effects of varied parboiling conditions on proximate and mineral composition of Jasmine-85 and Nerica-14 rice varieties in Ghana Ayamdoo Abugre Joseph 1 *, Amikizunu Joseph 1 and Abdul-Razak Abizari 2 1 Faculty of Agriculture, University for Development Studies, Box TL 1882, Tamale, Ghana. 2 School of Medicine and Health Sciences, University for Development Studies, Box 1882, Tamale, Ghana. Article History ABSTRACT Received 24 February, 2015 Received in revised form 27 March, 2015 Accepted 31 March, 2015 Key words: Rice varieties, Parbioling, Nutrient content. Article Type: Full Length Research Article Parboiling of paddy rice is an integral part of post-harvest rice processing. This practice of parboiling varies among individuals or groups. This study investigated the effect of different parboiling conditions on the nutrient content of two rice varieties, Jasmine-85 and Nerica-14. The paddy was soaked in a warm water of 40°C at four different periods of 6, 20, 24 and 36 h, and then steamed at 40, 60 and 90 min at a temperature of 100°C. Guidelines of Association of Official Analytical Chemists were used to obtain the proximate and mineral compositions of the parboiled rice. Concentration of minerals like iron, zinc, calcium and manganese was determined using Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy whiles Flame Emission Spectroscopy technique was used to determine the concentration of potassium and sodium. Results obtained from the varied levels of parboiling showed that averagely protein content decreased from 6.8 to5.1% (P<0.05), carbohydrate content decreased from 70.3 to 55.9% (P<0.05) and crude fibre content reduced from 2.9 to 2.1% (P<0.05) after parboiling. Also the concentration of the iron, zinc, calcium, manganese, potassium, and sodium decreased as a result of parboiling. For instance iron concentration decreased from 1.8 ppm in non-parboil rice to 1.0 ppm in parboiled rice (P<0.05) and Zinc also reduced by 0.33 ppm due to parboiling (P<0.05). A parboiling condition of 20 h soaking; 60 min steaming gave better results on all the parameters. In conclusion, parboiling of paddy rice affects the proximate and mineral contents of rice. It is recommended that practitioners should parboil for 21 h (20 h soaking followed by 1 h steaming) for optimum nutrients and minerals content. ©2015 BluePen Journals Ltd. All rights reserved INTRODUCTION Rice is important to Ghana’s economy and agriculture, accounting for nearly 15% of the national Gross Domestic Product (Kranjac-Berisavljevic, 2000). Rice meals have become an important part of the daily Ghanaian menu, both in terms of its caloric value and share of the household budget. Among the cereals in Ghana, per capita consumption of rice is second to maize (Quaye et *Corresponding author. E-mail: jayamdooabugre@yahoo.com. al., 2000). Rice consumption in Ghana increased from 7.4 kg per capita/annum between 1982 and 1985 (WARDA, 1986) to 13.3 kg per cap/annum (Government of Ghana, 1996) resulting in a total annual consumption of 239 400 tonnes of milled rice (that is, estimated on 18 million population). The annual consumption (1991-1996) thus showed an increase of 119 000 tonnes over that of 1990 (Oteng, 1997). Ghanaians, especially urban and suburban dwellers eat rice not only as a source of calories but also as a convenient food. It is therefore not surprising that rice is one of five staple crops