The Future of Smallholder Farming in Eastern Africa - Uganda ...

3.2 Desk study
The desk study involved collecting secondary data and synthesizing reports mainly from the
Fisheries Department and the Department of Environmental Affairs (Lilongwe and
Mangochi). Chambo fish prices from 1992 were obtained from MALDECO. Observations
were also made on ecological issues that influence the fisheries sector.
3.3 Field study
The field studies were conducted with various chambo user groups, including consumers,
traders, gear owners, crewmembers, and communities around fishing areas. Therefore, a
multipronged approach, including qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection, was
employed.
The random sample consisted of 73 chambo consumers from 22 districts of Malawi and 2
districts of Zambia (Appendix A) who had responded to an advertisement. These consumers
completed structured questionnaires and participated in an untrained sensory investigation at
Bunda College of Agriculture, University of Malawi, to determine their consumption habits
and preferences regarding chambo and other species from Lake Malawi—Rhamphochromis
spp. (ncheni) and Bagrus meridionalis (kampango). Fillets of chambo, whole ncheni, and
kampango were purchased from MALDECO Fisheries Ltd. The ncheni was filleted at the
cafeteria. The fillets were prepared using three cooking methods: roasting, frying, and
boiling. Boiled samples were smoked before being boiled. Members of the sensory panel
came from the Bunda College community. The panelists (consumers) were asked to
determine the most preferred species and sat for a sensory evaluation (refer to Photo C) to
choose the fish samples they would prefer to eat. Parameters evaluated included appearance,
using visual perception; aroma and smell, using nose; taste, juiciness, and tenderness, using
mouth feel; and acceptability, using a hedonic scale.