Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) plays an important role in food security, but also as a
cash crop. The crop is widely cultivated for its starchy roots (El-Sharkawy, 2006) and is
considered one of the most important staple foods in tropical countries (Sagrilo et al., 2006).
Cassava represents the fourth largest source of energy (Alves, 2002; Sagrilo et al., 2006)
besides being a very important animal feed and industrial raw material (Cardoso and Souza,
2002; Doreto, 1993; Sagrilo et al., 2006). Cassava is considered to be a food security crop …