Introduction After water, tea is the most widely consumed drink in the world (Alan, 2004). Tea has a stimulating effect in humans primarily due to its caffeine content (Daria, 2015). Lemon grass has a very wide demand in nutritional, medicinal and flavouring industries because it provides excellent aromatic properties and lemony flavour, however, it is grossly underutilized especially in terms of commercialization, Processing lemon grass into the dry form has the potential to extend its shelf life, improve its availability, acceptability and ease of transportation. The addition of ginger and turmeric powder to the dried lemon grass leaves is an attempt to improve its nutritional qualities. Materials and Methods The three basic raw materials used in the production of the formulated tea include Lemon grass, turmeric and ginger. The turmeric and ginger were prepared according to the method described by Okoye (2008) while the lemon grass was prepared according to the method described by Shah et al., (2011). The prepared materials were divided into four samples in varying proportions with sample A representing 100% Lemongrass, B 80% lemongrass,10% Turmeric, 10% ginger, C 70% Lemongrass, 20% Turmeric, 10% ginger and D 60% Lemmon grass, 30% turmeric, 10% ginger. All samples were analysed for proximate and vitamin contents. Results and Discussions The result of this study shows an increase in the moisture content of samples in which ginger and turmeric powder were added. The fat content of samples B, C, and D reduces while the ash content increases. This result is in line with Rehmanet al. (2002) who proposed that ash content should not exceed 5.54% to maintain the quality of tea during storage. Sample A was also significantly different from other samples in terms of its crude fibre, protein and carbohydrate contents. The result of the vitamin content determination shows that sample A have the least amount of vitamins A and B6 while it has the highest number of vitamins B12 and C. Conclusion All the tea samples produced in this research contain a significant amount of the vitamins analysed. However, sample D (60% Lemmon grass, 30% turmeric, 10% ginger) have the highest amount of vitamin A, B6 and vitamin C. Hence, recommended for mass production. However, further research is recommended in the area of the drying method used because sample D which had the highest number of vitamins analysed was found to have the highest moisture content which could adversely affect its shelf-life. Keywords: Lemon Grass, Ginger, Turmeric, Proximate Analysis and Moisture Content
ILESANMI Idayat, SARUMI-IROKO Mariam