Bauchi women devise method to improve tomato paste

Some housewives in Bauchi have devised a way of processing and preserving tomato paste for sale and for consumption.

Checks by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reveal that whereas those who sell the paste make appreciable profit, those who preserve same for domestic consumption also save a lot.

Some of the housewives interviewed in Bauchi said the process of preparation retained the freshness of the paste for three months or more.

They said those interested had the option of preparing either tomato paste alone or “tomapep” paste, a combination of fresh tomatoes mixed with pepper and onion.

Mrs Adama Balteh, who explained the process, said the first step was to buy a large quantity of fresh tomatoes, grind same and boil to remove liquid from it completely.

“As you boil the ground tomatoes to remove liquid, you also wash and boil the containers to be used in preserving the paste; the containers must be durable and airtight.

“Most of us use salad cream bottles (Bama), which are thoroughly washed and boiled (covers removed) for five minutes.

“Bottles that cannot withstand the pressure will crack and will therefore, be eliminated, leaving only those qualitative enough for preservation of the paste.

“The hot tomato paste completely drained of liquid, is then poured into the equally hot bottles, a pinch of salt added and small quantity of oil, and closed airtight to prevent infiltration of microorganisms.

“These bottles containing the paste are again boiled in hot water for five to 10 minutes, after which they are removed and kept in a safe place for sale in the future to make profit, or used at home to cut cost in times of scarcity,” Balteh explained.

According to her, an average size basket of tomatoes that sold for N1,000 during harvest period in Bauchi, can provide the about 30 ‘Bama’ fresh paste.

Another housewife, Mrs Saadatu Mohammed, said she had been in the business for the past three years and has never experienced any disappointment.

“It can be used to generate income, but most importantly, one can use the preservation method to prune down domestic budget on tomatoes,” she said.

For Mrs Hajara Jibrin, with N3,000 tomatoes, she was able to make a profit of N7,000. “I was able to produce 20 bottles of preserved paste and each bottle cost between N500 and N800 during scarcity, enabling me to make a profit of at least N7000,” she said. bottles of