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Vegetables from Research and feed use in the tropics

Lactic-fermented cassava leaves (experimental and feed)

Chopped cassava leaves are sealed from the air, sometimes with molasses or a lactic starter, and left for three to four weeks while lactic bacteria lower the pH. Most of this work is silage for animal feed; one food trial found less cyanide after fermenting, but no study we read shows the result is safe to eat.

Fully documentedVegetables21 days – 28 days

Recipe

Amounts from a sourceAmounts are from a silage trial (Bakare et al. 2023). There is no traditional food recipe.
Cassava leavesStalks removed, chopped to 1–3 cm with a chaff cutter[bakare2023]
Molasses (optional)0, 3, 5 or 7 g per 100 g of leaves[bakare2023]
Lactobacillus buchneri (optional)About 100 mL of inoculant per 25 kg of leavesTested at 3.1×10⁶ to 3.1×10¹⁰ cfu/mL[bakare2023]
Starterspontaneous, or a lactic starter (Lactobacillus buchneri; or Bifidobacterium, Lactobacillus acidophilus and Streptococcus thermophilus)

Total time across the recorded steps: 21 days – 28 days

Start
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What changes: Cassava leaves are stripped from their stalks and chopped small

Step 1 of 4
Strip the stalks and chop the leaves
Time
Not documented
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Lactobacillus buchneri
Lactobacillus plantarum
L. plantarum
Pediococcus acidilactici
Lactic acid bacteria

Output: chopped leaves, 1–3 cm.

Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

At a glance

Chopped cassava leaves are sealed from the air, sometimes with molasses or a lactic starter, and left for three to four weeks while lactic bacteria lower the pH. Most of this work is silage for animal feed; one food trial found less cyanide after fermenting, but no study we read shows the result is safe to eat. Made in 4 steps over 21 days – 28 days. The longest step, seal from the air and ferment, takes 21–28 days (Bakare A.G 2023) and runs at 27–37 °C (Bakare A.G 2023). Lactobacillus buchneri, added as an inoculant in the Fiji silage trial and Lactobacillus plantarum, 93.0–94.6 % of the bacteria in cassava-leaf silage after 42 days when a commercial L. plantarum inoculant and 2 % glucose were added, with or without fibre enzymes do most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main step21–28 daysReported[bakare2023][barati2019]Seal from the air and ferment
Temperature27–37 °CReported[bakare2023][barati2019]Seal from the air and ferment
AciditypH 5.5Measured[bakare2023]Seal from the air and ferment

What makes this one different

The same leaf as ntoba mbodi, taken down the acid (lactic) path instead of the alkaline (Bacillus) path. It is sealed and soured for weeks, not wrapped and left alkaline for days.

Related ferments

Safety

This page describes silage and lab trials, not a food recipe, so do not eat the result. Cassava leaves hold cyanogenic glucosides, which the 2019 poster says should be removed before human consumption. Cyanide was significantly lower in the leaves fermented for 21 days at 37 °C than in unfermented leaves, but the poster does not show a safe level. Food use boils the leaves. In FAO's table, 15 minutes of boiling took them from 68.6 to 3.7 mg HCN/kg, while washing or drying changed little. With no molasses the sealed silage stayed near pH 5.5. As a general point, WHO says C. botulinum stops growing only below pH 4.6; no study we read tested this silage for it. In the silage trial no mould was detected, and green turning brown or very dark marks silage that has gone bad.

Hazards the sources name: Klebsiella pneumoniae (1.23 %) and Enterococcus faecium (0.64 %) of the bacteria in the glucose-only control silage after 42 days; not detected in the inoculated silages.

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

Barati et al. (2019) say cassava leaves are traditionally eaten with starchy dishes in countries such as Nigeria and Congo but are otherwise mostly neglected. Bakare et al. (2023) say people hardly use the leaves except in a few countries where they are a vegetable.

  1. [bakare2023] Bakare A.G., Zindove T.J., Bhavna A., Devi A., Takayawa S.L., Sharma A.C. et al. 2023, Lactobacillus buchneri and molasses can alter the physicochemical properties of cassava leaf silage, Heliyon, e22141paper
  2. [barati2019] Barati Z., Awiszus S., Latif S. and Müller J. 2019, The effect of lactic acid fermentation on cassava leaves, Tropentag 2019 posterother
  3. [hossain2026] Hossain M.D., Yan Q., Wittayakun S., Napasirth V., Paengkoum P., Tan Z. 2026, Synergistic effects of fibrolytic enzymes and lactic acid bacteria on cassava leaf silage quality and microbial community, Bioresources and Bioprocessing 13, doi 10.1186/s40643-026-01151-zpaper
  4. [fao1990] FAO 1990, Roots, tubers, plantains and bananas in human nutrition, ch. 7, Toxic substances and antinutritional factors (cassava toxicity; Table 7.1)gov
  5. [who-botulism] World Health Organization, Botulism, fact sheetgov