Irish potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) ranks among the most strategically important food crops in the world, yet substantial proportions of annual harvests are lost to post-harvest deterioration, particularly in developing countries where refrigeration and cold chain infrastructure remain inaccessible to most smallholder farmers. Dehydration has for centuries been recognised as one of the most practical and cost-effective strategies for extending the shelf life of perishable agricultural commodities, operating by reducing moisture content and water activity to levels at which microbial spoilage, enzymatic browning, and chemical deterioration are effectively suppressed. This paper reviews published evidence on the effects of dehydration on the nutritional composition, microbial safety, sensory attributes, and shelf-life extension potential of Irish potatoes, with attention to the influence of drying method, temperature, pre-treatment, and slice thickness on product quality outcomes. Evidence from the reviewed literature consistently shows that hot air dehydration at 55 to 65 degrees Celsius concentrates carbohydrates, minerals, and B-vitamins on a dry-weight basis, while heat-labile vitamin C undergoes substantial thermal degradation. Antinutritional factors including phytic acid, oxalates, tannins, and protease inhibitors are significantly reduced through thermal denaturation during drying, thereby improving the net nutritional bioavailability of dried products. Microbial load studies confirm that hot air drying at 60 to 70 degrees Celsius reduces total viable counts by 2.5 to 3.0 log units, and that the resulting low water activity prevents microbial re-growth during extended storage. Consumer acceptability studies report overall sensory scores of 7.0 to 8.5 on a nine-point hedonic scale when processing conditions are well controlled. Key research gaps identified include the need for locally grounded dehydration studies using Nigerian potato varieties, long-term tropical shelf-life monitoring, and economic analyses of locally fabricated dehydration equipment for smallholder contexts.
Kevin et al. (Fri,) studied this question.