Abstract
Landrace orange maize is rich in carotenoids and is thought to be a potentially sustainable solution for Vitamin A deficiency. This study evaluated the acceptability of landrace orange maize food products among school-aged children living in rural Malawi. It also determined the retention of provitamin A carotenoids after storage in an uncontrolled environment, followed by milling and cooking. Sensory evaluations of porridge and nsima (thick porridge) were carried out in school-aged children (n = 160) using a 7-point hedonic scale. Total carotenoid content (TCC) was analysed using a spectrophotometric method and High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) was used to identify the specific carotenoid composition of the food products. Sensory evaluation results showed a higher acceptance of landrace orange maize food products in comparison to those commonly prepared from white maize. Plain porridge scored 6.5 ± 1.4 and 5.6 ± 1.9 for orange and white maize, respectively. Similar results were observed with nsima. Orange maize nsima received a score of 6.8 ± 0.7 while white maize was evaluated at 5.8 ± 1.9. After 10 months of storage and processing, there was 89% retention of total carotenoids with 59% accounted for by evaluation of individual carotenoids. Despite the total degradation of beta-carotene, 42% retention of beta-cryptoxanthin with provitamin A activity was observed. Encouraging the production of landrace orange maize appears to be a useful strategy for providing Malawian farmers with carotenoid-rich foods with high palatability. It presents a cost-effective option to reduce dependence on supplementation and fortification. Graphical Abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.]
| Original language | American English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 57 |
| Journal | Food Production, Processing and Nutrition |
| Volume | 5 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Dec 2023 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:The authors would like to thank the Pears Foundation and the International School of Agricultural Sciences at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem for the scholarship that enabled this research to be carried out. We also appreciate the Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (OSISA) for providing support for the fieldwork through the Pro-Farmer Project. Special thanks go to the lab technicians (Mr Timothy Mguntha and Mr Idris Mtewa) from the University of Malawi-Chancellor College who supported the sample analysis work. Lastly, many thanks to all the mothers who brought their children to the study location and waited patiently for their children to take part in the sensory acceptance test.
Funding Information:
The authors would like to thank the Pears Foundation and the International School of Agricultural Sciences at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem for the scholarship that enabled this research to be carried out. We also appreciate the Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (OSISA) for providing support for the fieldwork through the Pro-Farmer Project. Special thanks go to the lab technicians (Mr Timothy Mguntha and Mr Idris Mtewa) from the University of Malawi-Chancellor College who supported the sample analysis work. Lastly, many thanks to all the mothers who brought their children to the study location and waited patiently for their children to take part in the sensory acceptance test.
Funding Information:
This work was funded by Pears Foundation through the International School of Agriculture Sciences-Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (OSISA) [grant number GA8139] through the University of Malawi, Pro-Farmer Project. The sponsors had no involvement in the study design, data collection and analyses, writing of the report, or decision to submit the material for publication.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2023, The Author(s).
Keywords
- Carotenoids
- Landrace orange maize
- Provitamin A
- Sensory evaluation
