Suchergebnisse

Processing of plant foods has been in practice over a long period of time for various reasons; ranging from optimization of product quality, such as improvement in flavour, texture, nutrient density, and bioavailability as well as reduction in viscosity, bulkiness, and antinutritional factors/toxins or for improvement of functional properties for use in other food systems. Indigenous food fermentation is one of the oldest 'food biotechnological processes' dependent on the biological activity of microorganisms from which the development of fermented foods is achieved in the cultural history of human beings. Mango (Mangifera indica) is a tropical fruit plant that contains high levels of nutrients, fibre, macronutrients, micronutrients, and minerals as well as abundant bioactive compounds such as antioxidants and polyphenols reported to be an alternative to enhance body immunity. This study is to process fermented mango pulp flour and the effects of the period of fermentation time on the chemical composition and selected functional properties of mango pulp flours were examined. The fermentation time ranged from 0-72 h with Flour of the unfermented (0hr) Mango serving as control. Fermentation for 24hr to 72hrs significantly increased (p<0.05) crude protein and total ash in the flours. Ether extract and carbohydrates significantly decreased (p<0.05) in the flours with an increase in fermentation time. Significant (p<0.05) reduction in Bulk density, swelling index, and water absorption capacity occurred in the flour with fermentation. There was a significant (P<0.05) increase in Vitamin C and beta–carotene content of the fermented samples and this was constant as fermentation progressed across all the samples. Therefore, fermented mango flours have a great potential to be developed into healthy foods since antioxidants have the ability to improve immunity and anti-inflammatory response.

This research accesses the suitability of using processed flours from fermented and unfermented yellow-fleshed sweet-potato as alternative flour based on their physiochemical and microbiological properties. Raw yellow sweet potato tubers were obtained from a local Nigerian market and processed into fermented and unfermented sweet potato flours. Their microbiological and physiochemical (proximate and functional) properties were analyzed using standard methods. The microbiological results identified six bacterial genera; (Bacillus, Klebsiella, Micrococcus, Staphylococcus, Lactococcus, and Enterobacter) and five fungal genera (Aspergillus, Penicillium, Mucor, Candida, and Saccharomyces). Bacillus and Aspergillus spp. were the most dominant bacterial and fungal genera respectively. The physiochemical result reveals that fermenting sweet potato flour resulted in improved protein, moisture content, and water and oil adsorption capacities compared to the unfermented flour. The pH also decreased from 8.8 to 5.0 after 72 h of fermentation. Most of the microorganisms isolated are associated with plants, water, environment, and fermentation, they are generally recognized as safe (GRAS) organisms and their potentials can be further exploited in the food industry. These findings highlights the potentials of incorporating fermentation techniques in enhancing the nutritional and techno-functional attributes of sweet potato flour as a healthy alternative gluten-free flour-based staple diet.

Poor-quality diets are one of the most significant barriers to children's survival, growth, development, and learning today. In the context of this experiment, weaning porridge from complementary flour blends of locally available foodstuffs (millet, sorghum, green beans, and pumpkin seeds) was formulated for nutritional, functional, microbiological, and sensory acceptability. The results outlined that all the developed weaning porridge complied with the energy and nutrient density (zinc, iron, and protein) criteria. Energy (2.06-2.08 Kcal/g), protein (4.09-5.44% g/100 Kcal), iron (3.96-4.59 mg/100 Kcal), and calcium (0.39-1.37 mg/100 Kcal) were the nutrient density values identified. The functional features revealed an excellent reconstitution index (5.25-4.53) with a significant difference (P<0.05), a swelling index ranging from 1.03% to 0.57%, and a viscosity ranging from 195.5 cp to 204.5 cp. This study provides valuable insight that complementary foods made from locally available foods are potential solutions for mitigating childhood malnutrition and providing adequate complementation to breastfeeding in resource-poor and technologically underdeveloped countries by providing the needed energy and nutrient densities for immunity, well-being, growth, and development of young children and infants without fortification.