Essential and trace elements status in the indigenous Ethiopian tuber crops

Abstract The objective of the study is multi elemental analysis of four indigenous Ethiopian tuber crops using instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA) technique in order to get scientific evidences about the status of essential, trace and non-essential elemental compositions. The samples were collected from Southern and South-western parts of Ethiopia. The irradiation and measurement were performed by using irradiation and counting facilities of the Nigeria Nuclear Reactor-1 (NIRR-1) and a HPGe detector setup at the Centre for Energy Research and Training (CERT), Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, Nigeria. A total of 17 elements were determined at various concentration levels. The highest concentrations of K, Mg, Mn and Zn were found in Colocasia esculenta (L.) Schott, whereas; the concentrations of essential and trace elements; Ca, K, Mg, Na, Cl, Mn, and Zn were found to be high in the native Coccinia abyssinica (Lam.) Cogn tuber. The estimated daily intake values of the constituent elements from the consumption of these crops are below upper tolerable limits set by international organizations such as WHO and FAO.