Objectives

In accordance with Article 9 of LaSTA’s statutes, the laboratory aims to:

• Preserve local agri-food heritage through the capitalization and mastery of associated scientific knowledge and know-how;
• Provide the populations of Benin, Africa, and the international community with improved food processing techniques and products that meet the explicit and implicit needs of consumers;
• Contribute to the modernization and industrialization of Benin and Africa, based on indigenous knowledge and the most advanced scientific knowledge;
• Support scientific research in alignment with the State’s priority research areas;
• Strengthen North-South and South-South cooperation through research projects.

Every member of LaSTA contributes to achieving these objectives and fulfilling this vision by actively engaging in the laboratory’s research unit activities.

Research Units

LaSTA is structured into four (04) research units. These units operate using the infrastructure of former laboratories, the Aklui pilot production workshop, and the dedicated platforms of the “Professor Mathurin Coffi NAGO” Food Technology Hall (HTA).

The research units established at the creation of the laboratory are:

• Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Food Quality Unit (BBQA)
• Microbiology, Biotechnology, and Food Safety Unit (MBSA)
• Food Engineering Processes, Equipment, and Technological Incubation Unit (PEGA-IT)
• Consumer Food Behavior and Needs Analysis and Modeling Unit (AMBC)

Research Areas

The research axes per research unit of the LaSTA are as follows:

5.1. Key Research Areas – BBQA Unit

Inventaire / caractérisation de chaînes de valeurs alimentaires ;
• Inventory and characterization of food value chains
• Characterization of food products and agro-processing techniques
• Optimization of local products with high socio-economic potential and their associated processing methods
• Evaluation of technological potential of neglected species
• Assessment of the processing potential of plant-based raw materials
• Instrumental analysis of sensory properties of food products
• Evaluation of chemical risks related to food consumption
• Development of new agri-food products

• Proximate composition analysis of food
• Chromatographic analysis of food compounds of interest
• Spectrophotometric quantification of food minerals
• Physical analysis of food (rheology, texture measurement, colorimetry, etc.)
• Sensory profiling of food products

• Microbial ecology of foods produced by traditional technologies (general microbiological characteristics – bacterial and fungal)
• Food biotechnology:
• Food fermentations
• Evaluation of the functional properties of fermentative microorganisms and their applications (microorganism–nutrition–health interactions, technological aptitude, etc.)
• Production of microbial starter cultures
• Identification of pathogenic and/or foodborne illness-causing microorganisms
• Assessment of microbiological risks associated with food consumption
• Support for implementing HACCP systems in food companies for food safety management
• Industrial microbiology

• Enumeration of microorganisms (fermentative, pathogenic, and spoilage)
• Identification of microorganisms based on biochemical properties
• Microorganism screening using PCR
• Controlled fermentation (bioreactor use)

• Design of agri-food equipment
• Maintenance of agri-food equipment
• Valorization of local products (cashew apple, Peulh cheese, etc.)
• Development of bio-coagulants for Wagashi production
• Development of agri-food packaging
• Development of biopesticides for crop and post-harvest storage protection
• Development of bioenergy

• Enhance the development of scientific partnerships
• Improve dissemination of research results using tools adapted to the local context
• Strengthen technical support to businesses and start-ups to scale up research results
• Develop partnerships with local agri-food companies in the field of scientific research
• Upgrade LaSTA’s technical platform to better meet user expectations