Efektivitas Larutan Lengkuas Terhadap Penurunan Kadar Formalin pada Ikan Asin Kepala Batu (Pseudocienna Amovensis) di Pasar Sentral Kota Medan

Abstract

Salted fish is a common food that is preserved through salting and drying. It is one of the processed fish products that is popular with the public. However, there are still traders who use formaldehyde to preserve salted fish so that it lasts longer and solely for the traders' profit. Formaldehyde is a preservative that is prohibited in food and can be harmful for health. This research is a quasi experiment that aims to determine the effectiveness of a solution of galangal with a concentration of 0%, 5%, 10%, 15% with a soaking time of 15 and 30 minutes at each concentration in reducing formalin levels in salted stone head fish. The research location is in the Central Market of Medan City. The results showed that the average level of formalin in stone head salted fish before treatment was 18.5 mg/kg. The average formalin level decreased the most in salted stone head fish, namely after soaking with galangal solution at a concentration of 15% for 30 minutes, the average formalin level decreased to 7.07 mg/kg. The one-way Anova test showed that galangal solution was effective in reducing formalin levels in salted stone head fish with a p value of 0.0001 (p <0.05), the results of the multiple comparison test showed that galangal solution was the most effective in reducing formalin levels in stone head salted fish is a concentration of 15% with a soaking time of 30 minutes. The average formaldehyde content does not eligible the requirements of the Minister of Health of the Republic of Indonesia Number 033 of 2012 that the formaldehyde content in food must be 0 or negative. It is suggested to the government to be able to carry out supervision, monitoring and guidance to the public regarding the dangers of using formalin in food ingredients.