Okereke Goodluck Obioma
Benue State University, Nigeria
Title: Nutritional Quality Of Wheat-Sweet Potato-Moringa Oleifera Seed Based Bread
Biography
Biography: Okereke Goodluck Obioma
Abstract
Skyrocketing prices of wheat flour based products (including their poor nutrient contents) like bread in developing countries like Nigeria, are a major contributor to the rising nutritional food insecurity. This concern has provoked nutritionists, food experts and proactive researchers into aggressive expansion of strategic researches geared towards tackling this menace with local food crops. In light of this, various composite bread (Samples N, H and A) were made from the blends of wheat flour, native/heat moisture treated/acetylated starch of sweet potato, and Moringa oleifera seed flour in the percentage ratio of 85:10:5 respectively. Nutritional and baking properties of these composite bread were investigated against those of ‘control bread’ (Sample C- 100% wheat flour bread). In terms of Nutritional quality and shelf stability, all the composite bread were significantly (p<0.05) higher than ‘control bread’; and also did not significantly (p<0.05) differ from it in terms of baking properties. The range of values of the results obtained were for: moisture (33.60-37.40%), ash (2.06-2.23%), crude fibre (0.72-1.34%), fat (1.07-1.53 %), protein (10.76-11.79%), carbohydrate (46.86-49.12%), energy content (244.07-255.38 kcal/100g), calcium (112.28-117.10 mg/100g), iron (1.83-2.78 mg/100g), magnesium (56.44-58.14 mg/100g), phosphorus (63.24-66.86 mg/100g), vitamin A (0.180-0.390 mg/100g), vitamin B1 (0.032-0.07 mg/100g), vitamin B2 (0.066-0.099 mg/100g), vitamin B3 (0.176-0.430 mg/100g), vitamin B6 (0.200-0.470 mg/100g), vitamin C (13.540-11.370 mg/100g), height (6.00-8.80 cm), volume (504.65-860.15 cm3), weight (260.60-334.30 g), specific volume (1.94-2.57 cm3/g), appearance (7.28-7.36), aroma (6.32-7.19), taste (6.20-6.90), after-mouthfeel (5.85-6.43) and general acceptability (5.87-6.77).Sample N (i.e. bread made from composite flour of 85% wheat flour: 10% native sweet potato starch: 5% Moringa oleifera seed flour) significantly (p<0.05) had highest values in ash, fat, crude fibre, protein, calcium, iron, phosphorus, vitamin A, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, vitamin B3, vitamin B6, vitamin C; but had lowest values in carbohydrate, height, volume, weight and specific volume. These results have highlighted the potentials of these underutilized food crops in addressing nutritional insecurity and of course, food insecurity in Nigeria.