Quality and Proximate Evaluation of Porang and Corn Snack Bars as Local Emergency Food

Department of D3 Agricultural Product Technology, Vocational School, Universitas Sebelas Maret, Surakarta, Indonesia

^* Corresponding author: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Abstract

The increasing frequency of natural disasters and emergencies has increased the demand for emergency food products that are nutritious, durable, and easy to distribute. Conventional emergency food products often rely on imported raw materials, reducing accessibility and sustainability, especially in developing countries. Indonesia has abundant local food resources, such as porang (Amorphophallus muelleri) and corn, which have not been optimally utilized in emergency food production. This study aims to find the best formulation of snack bars so that they meet the nutritional and physical property standards for emergency food products. Three formulations (F1, F2, and F3) were made with varying flour combinations and then tested at two drying temperatures: 120°C for 30 minutes (P1) and 140°C for 30 minutes (P2). Quality assessments included sensory aspects (color, texture, taste, and overall acceptability) and proximate analysis (water, ash, protein, fat, carbohydrate, and energy content). The results showed that higher drying temperatures significantly reduced water content and increased the level of texture hardness. The F3P2 formulation (20 grams of porang flour and 30 grams of corn flour) showed a good balance between sensory acceptance, proximate composition, and the crude fiber test, thus meeting emergency food standards, such as water content ≤10%, carbohydrates ≥50–60 g/100 g, and crude fiber ≤5 g/100 g. These results indicate that this formulation is suitable for use as emergency food derived from local sources.