Production of maize-bambara groundnut complementary foods fortified pre-fermentation with processed foods rich in calcium, iron, zinc and provitamin A

• Published in: Journal of the science of food and agriculture 2010-03, Vol.90 (4), p.566-573
• Main Authors: Uvere, Peter O, Onyekwere, Eucharia U, Ngoddy, Patrick O
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animals; Arachis; Arachis hypogaea; Biological and medical sciences; Bone and Bones; bones; Brachystegia; Brachystegia eurycoma; Calcium; calyx; carotenes; Cattle; Cereal and baking product industries; complementary foods; Corn; Crops, Agricultural; emulsifiers; Emulsions; Fabaceae; Fermentation; fermented foods; food composition; food fortification; Food Handling; Food industries; food processing; Food processing industry; food processing quality; Food science; Food, Fortified; food-to-food; fortification; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Hibiscus; Hibiscus sabdariffa; Humans; Infant; infant foods; Infant Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; ingredients; Iron; maize-bambara; Micronutrients - analysis; nutrient content; nutritional adequacy; Nutritional Requirements; Palm Oil; palm oils; Plant Oils; Plant Structures; pre-fermentation; pretreatment; processed foods; red palm oil; Vigna subterranea; Vitamin A; Zea mays; Zinc
• ISSN: 0022-5142; 1097-0010
• DOI: 10.1002/jsfa.3846

BACKGROUND: Maize-bambara groundnut complementary foods are deficient in calcium, iron, zinc and vitamin A. Food-to-food fortification could be cheaper, safer and more easily adopted by local communities compared to the use of chemically pure compounds and vitamins to enrich such foods.RESULTS: Maize-bambara groundnut complementary foods fortified for iron, zinc, calcium and vitamin A by blending with a multi-mix (1.41:1:2.25, w/w) of processed roselle calyces, cattle bones, and red palm oil in a 1:2.1 (w/w) ratio showed significant increases in calcium, iron, zinc and vitamin A contents of 3.26-4.225, 0.083-0.134 and 0.015-0.017 g kg⁻¹ and 4855.3-7493.7 μgRE kg⁻¹, respectively.CONCLUSION: The maize-bambara groundnut foods had calcium, iron, zinc and vitamin A contents that satisfy the proposed nutrient requirements for infants. Only the maize-bambara groundnut and maize-bambara groundnut malt fermented by backslopping [(MB)b and (MBm)b] containing red palm oil emulsified with Brachystegia eurycoma had calcium contents significantly (P < 0.05) higher than Nutrend, a complementary food produced by Nestle (Nigeria) PLC. These products are from raw materials produced in commercial quantities by rural farmers using household level technologies which the rural and urban poor can more easily access in order to reduce micronutrient malnutrition.