Abstract
Orange maize is being promoted as a source of provitamin A carotenoids (pVAC) in Zambia. Carotenoid retention in orange maize grains stored in metal silos, multilayer polyethylene and common woven bags, and maize meal packaged in single and multilayer polyethylene bags was evaluated. Significant differences in total pVAC retention were found between grain storage methods (48.1–57.2%) after 6months of storage. Total pVAC retention in hammer meal (73.1–73.5%) was higher than in breakfast meal (64.3–69.3%) after 4months of storage; however, no differences in pVAC retention were found between meal types when stored in single and multilayer polyethylene bags. In general, β-cryptoxanthin (βCX) had higher retention than β-carotene (βC). Potential contribution of stored orange maize to the estimated average requirement of children and women was 26.5% and 24.3%, respectively. Orange maize meal can provide significant amounts of provitamin A to diets of Zambians even after 4months of storage.
Highlights
About 54% of children 0.5–5 years old in Zambia are vitamin A deficient (WHO, 2009)
The objectives of this study were to: 1) determine the rate of carotenoid degradation during kernel storage under different storage conditions; 2) assess provitamin A carotenoids (pVAC) retention in hammer and breakfast meal stored for 4 months using different packaging methods; and 3) estimate the percent estimated average requirement (EAR) of vitamin A provided by nshima made with biofortified orange maize
Carotenoid degradation was similar for ears and shelled orange maize
Summary
About 54% of children 0.5–5 years old in Zambia are vitamin A deficient (WHO, 2009). Maize is the most important crop for human consumption in Zambia, where annual production is 2.8 million metric tons and per capita intake is 287 g per day among women and 172 g per day among children 2–5 years old (FAOSTAT, 2016; Hotz, Palaniappan, Chileshe, Kafwembe, & Siamusantu, 2011). Maize consumed in Zambia as well as in other Southern and Eastern African countries is mostly white-grained, and the consumption of yellow grains is minor (Smale et al, 2015). Biofortified orange maize varieties have been grown commercially in Zambia, Nigeria and Ghana since 2013 (Alamu, Maziya-Dixon, Menkir, & Olaofe, 2015; Pixley et al, 2013; Smale et al, 2015).
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