Nutrient Composition And Consumer Acceptability Of Maize/Mushroom Composite Porridge For Complementary Feeding In Siaya County, Kenya.

ABSTRACT

Childhood undernutrition remains a key issue of concern to many countries, in the post 2015 global agenda for development with many developing countries particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) being affected. Undernutrition is a leading contributor to child morbidity and mortality being culpable for half of global child mortalities. Nutrition sensitive approaches are being advocated for sustainable outcomes, in the fight against malnutrition in vulnerable populations. Food based strategies including postharvest technologies target specific points in the food value chain. Maize (Zea mays), a basic staple widely used in complementary feeding in SSA is low in micronutrients and proteins while Oyster mushrooms (Pleoratus osteoratus) are reported to be rich in micronutrients and proteins and could thus provide a good supplement to maize and other cereal staples for complementary feeding in vulnerable populations. However, mushroom consumption in Kenya has remained low owing to paucity of local research evidence to drive the promotion of their cultivation and use. This study investigated the nutritional and sensory implications of supplementation of maize flour with oyster mushroom flour as a strategy towards enhancing complementary feeding in Siaya County. The study assumed a single factor completely randomized experimental research design. Validated procedures were used for nutrients analysis of the samples while sensory evaluation was conducted using Larmond’s reverse 9-point hedonic scale questionnaire on mothers with 6-23 months children. All analytical determinations were done in triplicate and means computed and subjected to statistical independent t-test for comparison. Sensory data was subjected to analysis of variance and post-hoc, Least Significant Difference. Differences were tested at p value < 0.05 significance. The results show significant mean compositional differences (p< 0.05) between enriched porridge (80:20 maize to mushroom formulation) and control porridge, in favor of the former, for all the nutritional components analyzed except carbohydrates, fats and energy value. Key analytical results were 51.461 ± 2.00 and 49.183 ± 0.420 Kcal /100g energy value; 1.228 ± 0.165 and 2.249 ± 0.043 % proteins; 0.330 ± 0.0160 and 0.801 ± 0.0320 mg/100g iron; 0.262 ± 0.006 and 0.385 ± 0.012 mg/100g zinc; 0.053 ± .002 and 0.094 ± .001 mg/100g thiamine; 0.034 ± 0.002 and 0.095 ± 0.006 mg/100g riboflavin; 0.377 ± 0.015 and 1.150 ± 0.011 mg/100g niacin and 1.673 ± 0.395 and 9.310 ± 1.01μg/100g folates for the control and enriched porridge respectively. Sensory analysis showed no significant differences in acceptability between the two porridge samples for all the sensory attributes except for color and aroma (in favor and disfavor of the enriched porridge respectively). Independent t-test showed no significant difference in overall acceptability (p = 0.082) between the two porridge samples. Supplementation of maize flour with oyster mushroom flour increases the nutrient content of porridge flour for complementary feeding of children. The study provides evidence that will inform current efforts in both agri-nutritional promotion of mushrooms and the development of new nutritious food products based on mushrooms. With further research, it is recommended that mushroom be considered as a component in formulation of complementary porridge flours.