The purpose of this paper is to assess the quality of selected small‐scale produced yoghurt brands on the market in Kampala city, Uganda.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to assess the quality of selected small‐scale produced yoghurt brands on the market in Kampala city, Uganda.
Design/methodology/approach
Four samples of each of four brands of small‐scale produced yoghurt were purchased from different shops in Kampala on four different occasions within a period of one month. Physico‐chemical, microbiological and rheological analyses were carried out on each of the samples. An untrained sensory panel was also used to assess their acceptability and purchase index. A premium brand (Fresh dairy yoghurt) was used as a control.
Findings
Lactobacilli counts ranged from 7.12‐9.25 log cfu ml−1 while lactococci ranged from 6.29‐6.8 log cfu ml−1 in the small‐scale yoghurt brands. All the small‐scale yoghurt brands were contaminated with fungi and coliforms at levels beyond the acceptable minimum, indicating insufficient process hygiene and also raising concerns of consumer safety. The protein, ash, carbohydrate and titratable acidity were not significantly different from the control. Fat, total solids, pH, viscosity and syneresis varied significantly between brands. The small‐scale produced brands were less viscous and exhibited more syneresis. All the small‐scale yoghurt brands were less acceptable compared with the control and two of them were disliked. The variation in their purchase index was related to their acceptability.
Practical implications
Regulatory and standards agencies should strengthen the surveillance of such products and the premises where they are produced. They should also work with other stakeholders in training small‐scale processors to ensure that their products meet both quality and safety requirements.
Originality/value
The paper assesses the quality of one of the many small‐scale produced products on the market in Kampala city.
Details
Keywords
Benjamin R. Tukamuhabwa, Musa Mbago, Henry Mutebi and Mercy Kyoshabire
Some scholars argue that ethical awareness increases alongside work experience,whereas others agree that ethics education shapes ethical awareness and that cheating in college…
Abstract
Purpose
Some scholars argue that ethical awareness increases alongside work experience,whereas others agree that ethics education shapes ethical awareness and that cheating in college predicts unethical behaviour in subsequent professional environment. The purpose of this paper is therefore to investigate the level and antecedents of ethical sensitivity of future procurement professionals.
Design/methodology/approach
An exploratory descriptive survey of a sample of 303 final year procurement students from the two largest public Universities in Uganda was conducted. Using Statistical Package for (SPSS) and Amos Version 27, data were analysed by using means, standard deviations, exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses and correlation analysis.
Findings
The study revealed that future procurement professionals exhibit low levels of ethical sensitivity. However, contrary to the general observations from the extant literature, gender and family background of students do not determine both ethical sensitivity and cynicism. Moreover, this study establishes that cynicism is positively associated with instances that depict low ethical sensitivity.
Research limitations/implications
This paper contributes to providing an empirical understanding of the derivation of unethical behaviour in procurement practice. Grounded in Aristotle’s organic theory of state and moral habituation, this argues that future procurement professionals posses natural proclivities that trigger their social instincts and membership to multiple associations in actualising their innate potential for ethical behaviour. This supports the notion that humans are potentially virtuous, whereby morality is learned, imitated, emerges and perfects through repetitive actions and is therefore incremental.
Practical implications
The findings mirror what prevails in practice in Uganda, where procurement practitioners have been implicated in unethical practices regardless of their gender and family background. This signals that managers should not recruit or deploy procurement personnel based on gender or family background.
Originality/value
While research on ethical sensitivity of students has been focussed on other disciplines such as accounting, nursing and other business studies, this paper focusses on ethical sensitivity of procurement students aspiring to join a professional environment that is severely marred with unethical practices. Further, Aristotle’s moral habituation and organic theory of state invoked in this study underline the synergies of both nature and nurturing in inculcating ethicality in procurement professionals.