Sorghum Malt Research Articles

Sprouting days: Its influence on quality characteristics of millet and sorghum flour

Sorghum and millet are among the most important cereal crops consumed worldwide, with production concentrated in many developing countries in Africa and Asia. Malting is a traditional cheap method adopted to improve sorghum and millet utilization in agribusiness and various households. This study determined the impact of sprouting duration on the quality characteristics of flours from sorghum and millet. The proximate, physicochemical and functional properties were observed in raw (0 day) and malted flours (2, 4, and 6 days). From the results, physicochemical properties generally increased (pH (4.79–6.17), TSS (1.40–5.16 oBrix), and TA (1.02–1.99 %)) with sprouting period for both millet and sorghum flours. Also, whilst proximate parameters such as ash (1.05–2.55 %), fat (1.69–10.55 %), and energy content (377.58–412.18 kcal) of malted millet and sorghum followed an increasing trend, fiber (1.98–1.68 %) and carbohydrate (89.10–78.67 %) decreased with increasing sprouting days. Again, with the exception of water holding capacity (1.75–2.33 %) which increased with the increase in sprouting days, all other functional properties (bulk density (0.59–0.54 g/ml), loose density (0.56–0.45 g/ml), oil holding capacity (2.50–1.45 %), and swelling index (1.07–1.02 %) declined in the malted millet flour. In the case of malted sorghum, bulk (0.64–0.59 g/ml) and loose (0.57–0.50 g/ml) densities observed a general decline while all other functional properties (water holding capacity, oil holding capacity, and swelling index of sorghum flour) revealed no obvious trend with sprouting days. This study revealed that sprouting duration has a significant impact on the quality parameters of both sorghum and millet flours. It is therefore important to explore such sprouted grain flours for possible incorporation in breakfast cereals, infant foods, and bakery products.

Physico-chemical changes in developed probiotic chicken meat spread fermented with Lactobacillus acidophilus and malted millet flour

This study was envisaged to develop a probiotic chicken meat spread fermented with Lactobacillus acidophilus (Lactic acid bacteria-LAB) and malted sorghum flour as a substrate and evaluation of its quality. Chicken meat spread was prepared by incorporating malted sorghum flour at 0, 2, 4 and 6 % (w/w) levels as a substrate in the product's formulation, along with Lactobacillus acidophilus at a concentration of 1 million cfu/g of the product. The product prepared with different formulations i.e. C (meat spread only), C1 (meat spread with 0 % malted sorghum flour + LAB), T1 (meat spread with 2 % malted sorghum flour + LAB), T2 (meat spread with 4 % malted sorghum flour + LAB) and T3 (meat spread with 6 % malted sorghum flour + LAB) were assessed for fresh product study and the storage stability at refrigeration temperature for 16 days when the physico-chemical parameters were analyzed. The fresh product study revealed significantly (p ≤ 0.05) higher moisture content in the T3 group. However, lower protein, ether extract, and ash content in T2 and T3 samples compared with the control, whereas a higher emulsion stability and cooking yield in the T2 group were observed when compared with the control. Free fatty acid, thiobarbituric acid, and titratable acidity values significantly (p ≤ 0.05) increased for the fermented samples in comparison to the control, and the same trend continued during the entire storage period. This study showcases the potential of using malted sorghum flour and Lactobacillus acidophilus to enhance the functional properties of chicken meat spreads, making them more nutritious and appealing to health-conscious consumers. Future research should focus on optimizing ingredient proportions and exploring alternative substrates to further improve these functional meat products.

The Ancestral Use of Ashes in Red Sorghum Malting, an Efficient Tool for Avoiding Polyphenol-Related Enzymatic Inhibition During Mashing

Malted red sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) is used as raw material in many traditional beers including Ikigage in Rwanda. In East African countries, sorghum malting may involve adding wood ashes. Mashing traditional sorghum malted with 5% eucalyptus ashes leads to a remarkable increase of EBC congress wort yield (64-69% against 15-22% without ash). Similar mashing yields can be obtained when a ratio of only 20% sorghum with ashes is used, or if ashes are added just prior mashing. Adjusting the wort pH to 6.5 with 1 M NaOH only partially mimics the presence of ashes (mashing yield = 39%). Total polyphenol and total flavanoid measurements, HPLC/UV quantitation of flavan-3-ols and ORAC antioxidant activities enabled us to show that the great benefit of ashes mainly comes from a 63-76% decrease in sorghum polyphenols.

Effect of Sorghum and Maize Malt Particle Size on Physicochemical, Stability, Microbiological, and Sensory Characteristics of Umqombothi

The consumption of Umqombothi alcoholic beverages in South Africa is widespread in townships and rural areas. This study aimed to investigate the effect of sorghum and maize malt particle size on the physicochemical, microbiological, stability, and sensory characteristics of Umqombothi. Three different particle sizes were compared, namely control, coarse, and fine powder particle sizes. Subsamples were taken at the following stages, during the production of Umqombothi: first, second, third, fourth, and fifth. Lactic acid bacteria were significantly dominant, with 8.16, 7.11, and 5.91 log cfu/mL in the final product for the control, coarse, and fine powder particle sizes. The yeast counts were 3.3, 4.64, and 5.63 log cfu/mL for the control, coarse, and fine powder particle sizes. Molds were significantly reduced to non-detectable levels after the second fermentation and the total coliforms in the final product were reduced for all particle sizes. The total soluble solids significantly decreased in the second fermentation samples. The coarse particle size exhibited significantly higher alcohol and significantly lower pH levels, which are encouraging signs for improved quality and shelf life. Different particle sizes of sorghum and maize malt affect the quality of the finished product and the production method of umqombothi.

Process Standardization of Functionally Enriched Millet-Based Nutri-Cereal Mix Using D-Optimal Design Approach for Enhancing Food and Nutritional Security.

Millets are currently employed in a variety of ways, including direct consumption and usage in the manufacture of certain cuisines or snacks. The present investigation was aimed at optimizing functionally enriched millet-based nutri-cereal mix comprising chicken and vegetable for a nutrition-deficient population. A total of 16 experiments were carried out by using optimal (custom) design model of mixture design with 60% major ingredients, including malted sorghum flour (20-30%), malted green gram flour (15-25%), and boiled chicken powder (5-15%). To make 100% of the total nutri-cereal mixture, other ingredients such as malted pearl millet (10%), finger millet flour (10%), beetroot powder (2.5%), pumpkin powder (7.5%), skimmed milk powder (9.5%), and stevia powder (0.5%) were added. Numerical optimization was done using Design Expert software, version 13. The optimized ratio was 30% malted sorghum flour, 15% malted green gram flour, and 15% chicken powder. The predicted values of responses 5.101%, 3.616%, 1.963%, 11.165%, 28.005%, 50.149%, 330.282 kcal, and 0.373 were in accordance with experimental values 6.426%, 3.455%, 1.714%, 11.432%, 29.12%, 47.853%, 323.318 kcal, and 0.385 for moisture, ash, fat, fiber, protein, carbohydrates, energy, and water activity, respectively, with a small error percentage. The results of mineral content, phenolic content, and amino acid profiling revealed that the optimized Nutri-cereal mix have higher amounts of these components. The results also suggested that the optimized Nutri-cereal mix of these malted millet flours can potentially enhance the nutritional deficiency as well as improve food and nutritional security.

Comprehensive Review of the Potential of Sorghum in Malt and Beer Production

Sorghum has a relatively lower price compared to other brewing cereals, and consequently has potential as an alternative substrate for lager beer brewing and especially represents an excellent option for gluten-free beers. Attributes such as extracts, proteins, total nitrogen and free amino nitrogen content of sorghum malt and the wort obtained from mashes indicate that sorghum is potentially an alternative substrate for conventional beer brewing in the tropics. In alcohol industry, some distillers prefer sorghum varieties with high starch and less protein contents. The variation in biochemical compositions among sorghum varieties affects the optimal malting conditions and characteristics of the grains. The degree of steeping and temperature, and germination capacity, kilning temperature and the intrinsic enzyme activity determine sorghum grain malt quality. The high degree of gelatinization temperature, poor saccarification, lower fermentability and filterability of sorghum malt could generally affects the acceptability of sorghum beer by the consumer than a beer brewed from malt barley.

Malted sorghum as a maize substitute in broiler diets: effect on feed utilisation, growth performance and haemo-biochemical parameters

Sorghum is amongst the most drought-tolerant cereals in the driest rain-fed regions of the tropics and its utilisation in sustainable poultry production is limited by presence of phytochemicals. Thus, this study evaluated the effects of malting dietary sorghum on growth performance and haemo-biochemical parameters of Ross 308 broiler chickens. A total of 150 unsexed, 2 weeks-old chicks were evenly distributed into 15 replicated pens which were randomly allocated into three experimental diets and fed in two phase feeding. Three diets were formulated by completely replacing maize grain in commercial grower and finisher diets (CON) with red malted sorghum (RSD) and white malted sorghum (WSD). Broilers fed CON and WSD diets gained more weight compared to those fed RSD in week 3 and 5. The lowest feed conversion ratio (FCR) was observed in CON in week 4 and 6. The protein efficiency ratio was the lowest with broilers fed malted sorghum-based diets (MSD) through out the study. Protein intake was the highest in broilers fed WSD in week 3 and 5, but lowest in week 4 and 5 in broilers fed RSD. Diets affected white blood cells basophils, corpuscular (volume and haemoglobin), corpuscular haemoglobin concentration, creatinine, bilirubin, and enzymes (GTP and GOT). Overall, the results from the present study suggest that maize grains can be replaced with malted white sorghum grains in poultry diets, without any adverse effects on the birds’ growth performance and general health status.

Evaluation of the physico-chemical properties of cassava, cocoyam, sweet potato starches and glucose syrups produced from the hydrolysis of the starches with sorghum malt enzyme extract

Some physicochemical properties of starches from cocoyam, cassava and sweet potato were compared for suitability in glucose syrup production. Glucose syrups were produced from the starch slurry using 30 g of sorghum malt per 250 g starch weight. Malts were produced from Nigerian sorghum varieties; SFF- Sorghum ‘Farafara’ and SFD-Sorghum ‘Farindawa’ (Sorghumbicolor L. Moench). The grains were steeped for 24 h with 8 h air rest and germinated for 96 h. Results showed that malted SFD and SFF-sorghum grains recorded diastatic powers (61.45 and 52.32 DU.g-1), α-amylase (38.19 and 43.3 DU.g-1) and β-amylase (14.13 and 18.15 DU.g-1) activities, respectively. Cocoyam starch contained highest amylose (28.20%) when compared with sweet potato starch (22.50%) and cassava starch (20.40%). Solubility and swelling power of cassava, sweet potato and cocoyam starches were 17.2, 16.5 and 15.3 g.g-1 and 9.6, 6.2 and 7.6% at 90℃, respectively. Cocoyam starch showed the highest transition temperatures (69.5, 73.6, 82.3℃) and gelatinization enthalpy (17.3 J.g-1) than sweet potato (67.4, 71.3, 78.4℃, 12.3 J.g-1) and cassava (61.3, 65.5, 75.6℃, 13.4 J.g-1) starches. Dextrose equivalent for cassava, sweet potato and cocoyam glucose syrups were 40, 36, 30. Cassava starch glucose syrup obtained from SFD-malt hydrolysis met most of the Standard Organization of Nigeria set specifications.

Optimizing extract recovery from sorghum using combinations of exogenous crude amylase and pullulanase isolated from yeast strains from cassava mill factory

Crude enzyme extracts of yeasts isolated from a cassava mill factory were utilized in optimizing extract recovery from sorghum or malted sorghum. Microbial enzymes are known to be very beneficial in industrial processes due to various advantages derived from them. Micro-organisms multiply very rapidly and produce diverse enzymes during the process. Such micro-organisms with potential to produce industrial crude enzymes abound in many natural environments. This study examined the performance of crude enzyme extracts (pullulanase and amylase) from yeasts strains (SP40 and SS12) isolated from a cassava mill factory. The crude enzyme extracts were used in mashing grain sorghum and malted sorghum using various enzyme combinations to study their effects on quality of wort specific gravity (SG), reducing sugars (RS) and free amino nitrogen (FAN). The decantation mashing process which protected the enzymes and gelatinized sorghum starch was more effective in producing wort of higher SG, RS and FAN products. Control enzyme (lower doses) gave wort SG of 1.034 (infusion mashing) and 1.056 (decantation mashing). Test enzymes (lower doses) also gave good wort SG of 1.018 (infusion mashing) and 1.034 (decantation mashing). The activities of pullulanase and amylase from SP40 and SS12 were similar because both microorganisms produced mainly starch hydrolysing enzymes. From this study, the crude enzymes compared well with commercial enzymes in using lower doses of the crude enzyme extract to produce wort of higher SG, RS and FAN products and this will save costs for the industry. The mashing regime is also an important factor to consider.

Effect of processing on the microbiological, proximate, antinutritional and mineral profile of selected yellow cassava varieties and sorghum malt as potential raw materials for alcoholic beverage production

Effect of processing on the microbiological, proximate, antinutritional and mineral profile of selected yellow cassava varieties and sorghum malt as potential raw materials for alcoholic beverage production

Substitution of maize with sorghum and millets in traditional processing of Mahewu, a non‐alcoholic fermented cereal beverage

SummaryThere is growing interest in Sub‐Saharan Africa for substituting maize with climate‐smart crops like sorghum and millets in local food processing. We conducted a survey to explore current variations in processing and consumption practices for Mahewu, a traditionally fermented cereal beverage from Zimbabwe. Processing involved cooking a cereal porridge, adding cereal flour or malt as a starter ingredient, and fermenting for 12–48 h. Ingredient availability was the main driver for porridge ingredient choice (42% of respondents) with the most preferred being maize (55% of respondents), pearl millet (22%) and sorghum (9%). Final product taste had the most influence on starter ingredient choice, with most respondents preferring pearl millet flour (23%), finger millet malt (22%), wheat flour (17%), and sorghum malt (13%). Our study proves that maize can be replaced with sorghum and millet in Mahewu processing, thus increasing the climate‐resilience of future food systems, and demonstrates that traditional practices harbour clues for adapting current practices.

Bio-functional and prebiotics properties of products based on whole grain sorghum fermented with lactic acid bacteria.

Products fermented with lactic acid bacteria based on whole grain flours of red or white sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) added with malted sorghum flour, or with skim milk (SM) were developed. Composition, protein amino acid profile, total acidity, pH, prebiotic potential, and bio-functional properties after simulation of gastrointestinal digestion were evaluated. In all cases, a pH of 4.5 was obtained in approximately 4.5 h. The products added with SM presented higher acidity. Products made only with sorghum presented higher total dietary fiber, but lower protein content than products with added SM, the last ones having higher lysine content. All products exhibited prebiotic potential, white sorghum being a better ingredient to promote the growth of probiotic bacteria. The addition of malted sorghum or SM significantly increased the bio-functional properties of the products: the sorghum fermented products added with SM presented the highest antioxidant (ABTS•+ inhibition, 4.7 ± 0.2 mM Trolox), antihypertensive (Angiotensin converting enzyme-I inhibition, 57.3 ± 0.5%) and antidiabetogenic (dipeptidyl-peptidase IV inhibition, 31.3 ± 2.1%) activities, while the products added with malted sorghum presented the highest antioxidant (reducing power, 1.6 ± 0.1 mg ascorbic acid equivalent/mL) and antidiabetogenic (α-amylase inhibition, 38.1 ± 0.9%) activities. The fermented whole grain sorghum-based products could be commercially exploited by the food industry to expand the offer of the three high-growth markets: gluten-free products, plant-based products (products without SM), and functional foods. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.

Proteomics and Metabolomics Reveal that an Abundant α-Glucosidase Drives Sorghum Fermentability for Beer Brewing.

Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), a grass native to Africa, is a popular alternative to barley for brewing beer. The importance of sorghum to beer brewing is increasing because it is a naturally gluten-free cereal, and climate change is expected to cause a reduction in the production of barley over the coming decades. However, there are challenges associated with the use of sorghum instead of barley in beer brewing. Here, we used proteomics and metabolomics to gain insights into the sorghum brewing process to advise processes for efficient beer production from sorghum. We found that during malting, sorghum synthesizes the amylases and proteases necessary for brewing. Proteomics revealed that mashing with sorghum malt required higher temperatures than barley malt for efficient protein solubilization. Both α- and β-amylase were considerably less abundant in sorghum wort than in barley wort, correlating with lower maltose concentrations in sorghum wort. However, metabolomics revealed higher glucose concentrations in sorghum wort than in barley wort, consistent with the presence of an abundant α-glucosidase detected by proteomics in sorghum malt. Our results indicate that sorghum can be a viable grain for industrial fermented beverage production, but that its use requires careful process optimization for efficient production of fermentable wort and high-quality beer.

GC–MS‐based metabolomics elucidates the impact of cereal‐based microbial starters on the metabolite profile of mahewu prepared from yellow maize

SummaryFermentation of yellow maize using different inocula yields mahewu products with varying compositions. Comprehensive analysis of the metabolites influencing distinctive characteristics of mahewu from sorghum malt (YMSM); wheat (YMW), malted millet (YMMM) and malted yellow maize (YMYM) inocula was investigated using an untargeted gas chromatography high‐resolution time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry (GC‐HRTOF‐MS)‐based metabolomics. Metabolites in mahewu from different inocula included phenols, fatty acid methyl ester (FAME), benzenes, amides, amines, cyclic compounds, fatty acid ethyl esters (FAEEs), esters, ketones and vitamins which differentiated metabolites identified in raw yellow maize (RYM). Principal component analysis (PCA) showed that the mahewu and related inocula were distinguished across PC1 and PC2. The OPLS‐DA result further intensifies the significant (P ≤ 0.05) metabolite causing variations among samples. This study serves as the first report into the metabolome of yellow maize mahewu from different inocula, serving as a foundation for the quality control of mahewu products for further research.

Brewing with Unmalted and Malted Sorghum: Influence on Beer Quality

One of the earliest biotechnological processes is brewing, which uses conventional raw materials like barley malt and, to a lesser extent, wheat malt. Today, adjuncts are used in the brewing of 85–90% of the world’s beer, with significant regional differences. The results of this study’s brewing were compared to those of beer made only from malted barley. Malted and unmalted sorghum were suggested for use in this study’s brewing. In order to improve the technical mashing operation and raise output yield, commercial enzymes were introduced. The following physicochemical analyses of the finished beer were carried out in accordance with regulatory requirements: original extract (% m/m), apparent extract (% m/m), alcohol content (% v/v, % m/m), density (g/cm3), turbidity (EBC), pH, color (EBC), bitterness value (IBU), oxygen content (mg/L), carbon dioxide content (g/L). A nine-point hedonic scale was used to conduct the sensory evaluation of the beer samples. Sorghum was easily included into the technological process to create a finished product that, in many ways, resembled traditional beer, making sorghum appropriate for typical beer drinkers. The laboratory brewing formula that produced the highest-quality results of all the tested variants included 60% sorghum malt and 40% unmalted sorghum: original extract 11.26% m/m, apparent extract 4.59% m/m, alcohol content 4.12% v/v, turbidity 0.74 EBC, CO2 content 5.10 g/L. The resulting sorghum beer typically has low alcohol content, a complex, aromatic, slightly sour flavor, a mild bitter or astringent sensation, and less stable foam.

Production of gluten-free beer brewing from sorghum malts mashed without external enzyme preparations

One of the main substrates for beer production is barley malt. Due to that fact, consumption of the most popular alcoholic beverage in the world is limited for the population suffering from celiac disease and other disorders. However, there are various cereals and pseudocereals which are gluten-free and could possibly be utilised for the malt and beer production. In this study, we have determined that it is possible to produce gluten-free beer from two sorghum varieties (GK Emese and Anggy) without the use of external amylolytic enzymes, only by application of malting and decoction mashing procedures. Sorghum beers were characterised with lower alcohol and higher extract content than control barley malt beer sample. Concentration of various volatiles, such as so-called fusel alcohols, was also lower in the sorghum beers produced in this study.

Physicochemical and sensory properties of cookies produced from malted sorghum and cassava grate composite flour blends

Malted sorghum - cassava flour was formulated into blends to produce cookies. Sorghum grains were sorted, washed, steeped (12 hours), malted (48 hours) and oven dried. Freshly harvested cassava roots were manually peeled, washed, grated and dried (using hybrid solar dryer at 50 oC). The dried malted sorghum grains and cassava were processed into flour and sieved. The blends were prepared by homogenously mixing malted sorghum flour and high quality cassava grate flour in varied proportion labelled as sample A (100 % Malted Sorghum Flour) Sample B (60 % Malted Sorghum Flour and 30 % Cassava Flour), sample C (70 % Malted Sorghum Flour and 30 % Cassava Flour) and Sample D (80 % Malted Sorghum Flour and 20 % Cassava Flour) separately prepared into cookies and subjected to proximate, mineral, anti-nutrients, physical and sensory analysis using standard analytical methods with chemicals of analytical grade. The result for moisture, Ash, Fat, Fibre, Protein, Carbohydrate and energy content for samples A, B, C and D respectively ranged from 3.11 % - 6.81 %; 1.41 % - 1.52 %; 21.66 % - 23.41 %; 2.20 % - 2.67 %; 4.41 % - 7.26 %; 60.86 % - 63.85 % 473.09 Kcal - 478.82 Kcal. The mineral result for sodium, potassium and calcium 15.06 mg/100 g, 12.70 mg/100 g, 14.40 mg/100 g and 17.00 mg/100 g; 24.70 mg/100 g, 28.17 mg/100 g, 21.60 mg/100 g and 25.17 mg/100 g; 11.30 mg/100 g, 13.10 mg/100 g, 10.09 mg/100 g and 10.09 mg/100 g respectively. The result recorded for colour ranged from 6.20 - 7.40; aroma was 6.30 - 7.30; taste ranged from 6.10 - 7.20; texture ranged from 5.60 - 5.90 and overall acceptability ranged from 5.70 - 6.50. It can be concluded that combination of Malted Sorghum and Cassava Flour in cookies production will help to enhance the utilization of both crops, nutritional intake, increase variety and reduce wheat importation.

Mycological and Multiple Mycotoxin Surveillance of Sorghum and Pearl Millet Produced by Smallholder Farmers in Namibia

Mycological (mycotoxigenic Fusarium and aflatoxigenic Aspergillus spp.) and multiple mycotoxins [aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), fumonisin B (FB), deoxynivalenol and zearalenone] surveillance was conducted on raw whole grain sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) and pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum) produced on smallholder farms, and processed products sold at open markets in northern Namibia. Fungal contamination was determined with morphological methods as well as with quantitative Real-Time PCR (qPCR). The concentrations of multiple mycotoxins in samples were determined with liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. The incidence of mycotoxigenic Fusarium spp., Aspergillus flavus and A. parasiticus, as well as the concentrations of AFB1 and FB were significantly (P < 0.001) higher in the malts as compared to the raw whole grains, with Aspergillus spp. and AFB1 exhibiting the highest contamination (P < 0.001). None of the analysed mycotoxins were detected in the raw whole grains. Aflatoxin B1 above the regulatory maximum level set by the European Commission was detected in sorghum (2 of 10 samples; 20%; 3–11 µg/kg) and pearl millet (6 of 11 samples; 55%; 4–14 µg/kg) malts. Low levels of FB1 (6 of 10 samples; 60%; 15–245 µg/kg) were detected in sorghum malts and no FB was detected in pearl millet malts. Contamination possibly occurred postharvest, during storage, and/or transportation and processing. By critically monitoring the complete production process, the sources of contamination and critical control points could be identified and managed. Mycotoxin awareness and sustainable education will contribute to reducing mycotoxin contamination. This could ultimately contribute to food safety and security in northern Namibia where communities are exposed to carcinogenic mycotoxins in their staple diet.

Nutritional and Phytochemical Composition of Mahewu (a Southern African Fermented Food Product) Derived from White and Yellow Maize (Zea mays) with Different Inocula

Mahweu is an important indigenous beverage for many low-income and undernourished consumers in southern Africa. As a result, the nutritional and phytochemical profile of mahewu samples (obtained using optimized fermentation and boiling conditions from a previous study) as well as their related raw materials (white and yellow maize) were investigated. At these conditions, white and yellow maize mahewu (WM and YM) were prepared utilizing various inocula including sorghum malt, wheat, millet malt, or maize malt, and the pH, titratable acidity (TTA), total soluble solid (TSS), and proximate analysis were determined. The mineral content, amino acid composition, and phenolic compound profile were also investigated using inductive coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES), high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), and ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UHPLC/Q-TOF-MS), respectively. Fermentation was observed to have influenced the proximate composition of obtained mahewu samples compared to the raw flour with significant (p ≤ 0.05) improvement in protein from 8.59 to 9.7% (YM) and 8.78 to 9% (WM) as well as carbohydrate from 72.27 to 74.47% (YM) and 71.15 to 72.65% (WM). Sodium, magnesium, phosphorous, potassium, calcium, manganese, iron, copper, and zinc were the minerals detected in the mahewu samples, while potassium was the most abundant mineral, having values ranging from 3051.61 to 3283.38 mg/kg (YM) and 2882.11 to 3129.97 mg/kg (WM). Heavy metals detected in this study were all below the recommended tolerable levels by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA). Arginine and leucine with values ranging from 0.47 to 0.52 g/100 g (YM) and 0.48 to 0.53 g/100 g (WM) as well as 0.91 to 1.04 g/100 g (YM) and 0.95 to 1.01 g/100 g (WM), respectively, were the most abundant essential amino acids, whereas for non-essential amino acids, glutamic acid, aspartic acid, alanine, and proline were observed to be abundant. Based on the different inocula, the derived mahewu samples prepared using either white or yellow maize have varying nutritional and health beneficial components and the choice of inocula might still be determined by consumer preference.

Effect of Community Nutrition Rehabilitation Using a Multi-Ingredient Flour on the Weight Growth of Moderately Acute Malnourished Children in Benin.

Childhood malnutrition remains a public health problem in Benin. This study aimed to assess the nutritional potential of complementary food resources to accelerate the weight growth of moderately malnourished children hosted in learning and nutritional rehabilitation centers (LNRs) in eight municipalities in Benin. A multi-ingredient infant flour (i.e., FARIFORTI), composed of 35% corn flour (Zea mays), 15% malted sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), 30% soybean (Glycine max), 10% shelled and roasted peanuts (Arachis hypogeaea), 7% baobab pulp (Adansonia digitata), and 2% dried fried fish (Stolothrissa tanganyicae), was tested with 289 moderately malnourished children aged 6 to 59 months, selected in LNR sessions. Children were given the FARIFORTI flour porridge over 12 days (based on LNR protocol) in addition to other dishes based on local food resources. The weight and height of the children were measured at entry and at the end of the LNR sessions. The sensory evaluation indicated that the FARIFORTI flour was well-accepted by mothers (97%) and children (98%). The FARIFORTI porridge provided significantly higher intakes of carbohydrates and iron in children with weight gain compared to children without weight gain.