Nutrient Optimization in Complementary Food Flour Using Orange-Fleshed Sweet Potato, Cricket Flour, Finger Millet and Cowpea Leaves

Abstract

Global child health is greatly affected by deficiency of essential nutrients especially among the low-income countries in Africa. Developing affordable strategies is crucial for addressing these deficiencies and enhancing food security. This research sought to address this critical gap for infants from 6 to 12 months by exploring the potential of complementary food produced using a root vegetable, specifically orange-fleshed sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas), traditional green vegetables, cowpea leaves (Vigna unguculata L. Walp), cereal finger millet (Eleusine coracana) and house cricket (Acheta domesticus) for enhancing the macronutrient and micronutrient consumption and improving food security. Formulations were optimized using NUTRISURVEY software through linear programming, where three different complementary foods, CF1 containing 45% finger millet, 25% orange fleshed sweet potato (OFSP), 20% house cricket, 5% cowpea leaves, 4% coconut oil and 1% sugar, CF2 including 40% OFSP, 25% finger millet, 25% house cricket, 5% cowpea leaves, 4% coconut oil and 1% sugar, lastly CF3 made of 43% finger millet, 30% house cricket, 20% OFSP, 3% cowpea leaves, 3% coconut oil, and 1% sugar, were developed following the recommended dietary allowance for this target group. Nutrient content analysis was conducted using proximate and mineral analysis, and safety analysis through microbiology analysis. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to test the significant differences among treatments while mean differences between treatments at p< 0.05 were separated using post-hoc Tukey Honestly Significant Difference (HSD). The results indicated that all the developed complementary foods fulfilled the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for the nutrients, except CF1 that did not fulfil the required limit for fat content (9.1g/100g), as it fulfilled up to 94.5% of the requirement, however, it had significantly higher carbohydrates content (62g/100g) and calcium (406mg/100g). The CF3 exhibited significantly higher levels of protein (20.3g/100g), energy (417Kcal/100g), and iron (17.7mg/100g) compared to CF1 and CF2. The CF1 contained 17.2g/100g of protein, 401Kcal/100g of energy, and 15.7mg/100g of iron, while CF2 had 20.1g/100g of protein, 416Kcal/100g of energy, and 17mg/100g of iron. The concentration of retinol equivalent fulfilled the recommended dietary allowance for CF2 (599µg/100g) and CF3 (646µg/100g), however CF1(217µg/100g) did not meet the RDA for this nutrient. Additionally, all the tested safety parameters were within the established limit for the acceptability of powdered foods, making orange fleshed sweet potato, cowpea leaves, finger millet and house cricket optimal ingredients for infant food purpose. The study validated that orange fleshed sweet potato, finger millet, cowpea leaves, and house cricket form a nutritionally balanced combination suitable for complementary food for infants aged 6 to 12 months. Moreover, these ingredients do not compromise the microbial quality of the food. Therefore, their inclusion is recommended in the formulation of complementary foods for this age group.