Abstract:

The demand for rice Oryza sativa in Uganda has exceeded local supply resulting into importation
of several other rice varieties and brands to meet the deficit. Lack of information on consumer
preferences hinders decision-making to invest in the rice sub sector. This study seeks to provide
information on consumer preferences of most rice brands ;hhI varieties on the local market. A
consumer survey and sensory analysis vere undertaken in the
The rice consumers, survey
was conducted among 475 households from 8 selected rice growing districts in Uganda using a
structured questionnaire to establish culinary attributes of rice prtferred. Sensory analysis was
conducted hy a 25-person controlled sensory panel that evaluated 17 boiled varieties and brands
of rice using a hedonic scale of J -7, to rank basic culinary attributes, t unsuiners' survey revealed
that 27 % of households consumed rice among the starchy food types. The consumption of local
and imported rice varieties and brands was 77.4 % and 22.6 % respectively. Preference for local
rice varieties and/or brands was influenced
afTordability (63.4 %) and good aroma and freshness
(47 %). Imported rice was appreciated for being full ^cain (82 %) and stone-free (82.7%). The
consumer survey further showed that preference for local rice varieties was in order of importance
as "Supa?' (77.8 %). Kaiso (10.7 r<) and NERICA lines (6.5 ?).Sensory evaluation to obtain the
mean sensory score (parentheses), indicated thut the most preferred local rice variety was NERICA
10 (5.56) while the least preferred variety was NERICA 1 (3.44). Overall, the Tilda and imported
rice varieties and brands were more acceptable than the local varieties on account of cleanliness
although Supa also scored highly due to its aroma.