Discoveries in Agriculture and Food Sciences

Fatty Acid Profile of Quassia undulata Oil Traditionally Extracted in Senegal

2025-11-14T04:32:43+00:00

This study examines the influence of Piliostigma thonningii leaves on the composition and physicochemical properties of Quassia undulata oil traditionally extracted by Bassari women in southeastern Senegal. Oils were produced with and without the presence of P. thonningii leaves following local extraction methods. Infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and gas chromatography (GC-FID) were used to determine their chemical composition and fatty acid profiles. The results show that both oils are predominantly composed of oleic acid (≈61–62%) and stearic acid (≈19%), with minor amounts of palmitic, linoleic, and linolenic acids. The total content of polyunsaturated fatty acids remains low (≈6%), indicating high oxidative stability. The oil extracted without P. thonningii leaves contained more double bonds, reflecting a higher degree of unsaturation. No statistically significant differences were found between the two samples, although a slight reduction in polyunsaturated fatty acids was observed in the oil obtained with P. thonningii, likely due to heat exposure during the purification step. Overall, Q. undulata oil is characterized by a high monounsaturated fatty acid content, good oxidative stability, and a solid texture at ambient temperature, making it a potential candidate for food, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical applications.

Assessing the Physicochemical, Nutritional and Sensory Properties of Cake Made with Wheat and Orange-Fleshed Sweet Potatoes Flour Blend

2025-10-24T08:26:46+01:00

This study evaluated the replacement of wheat flour with orange-fleshed sweet potato (OFSP) flour in terms of its proximate composition, functional characteristics, and sensory properties in cakes. Five treatments were made: AA (100% wheat), AB (80:20), AC (70:30), AD (60:40), and AE (50:50 wheat: OFSP). The proximate composition data show that moisture contents ranged from 16.62% (AC) to 21.46% (AD). Crude protein levels slightly increased with substitution from 10.02% (AA) to 12.13% (AC), before decreasing at the higher levels. Crude fat showed a decline with 39.07% in AA and 28.08% in AD. Crude fibre showed a significant improvement, rising from 0.22% in AA to 1.22% in AE. Also, the carbohydrate content in AE was 39.71% in comparison to 28.28% in AA. These results indicate that OFSP improves the nutritional value of cakes by increasing dietary fibre and carbohydrate content. OFSP addition had an impact on functional properties as well. Water absorption capacity (WAC) was 140 g/g for AA and increased with substitution, while oil absorption capacity (OAC) showed its peak value at 146 g/g for AA and showed minimal change with substitution. Bulk density showed a decrease from 0.543 g/cm³ in AA with increasing substitution of OFSP, which indicates lighter flour blends. Functional characteristics were affected by the inclusion of OFSP. Water absorption capacity (WAC) was 140 g/g for AA, and it increased further with the addition of OFSP. Oil absorption capacity (OAC) was highest at 146 g/g for AA. The OAC showed minimal variation afterwards with the inclusion of OFSP. Bulk density was lowest at 0.543 g/cm³ for AA and increased with increasing inclusion of OFSP, showing that the flour mixtures were lighter. For analysed AA, emulsion activity (EA) was 43.88% and foam capacity (FC) was 12.92%, both of which contribute to aeration and aesthetics. Sensory evaluation pertaining to colour, aroma, taste, texture and overall acceptability was conducted by 50 semi-trained panellists using a hedonic scale of 1-9. Based upon the ANOVA, cakes where the AA was substituted at 30% OFSP received acceptability scores similar to the control when the ratings were subsequently analysed. Acceptability was found to be highest for average colour (8.39± 0.92) and taste (8.08± 1.32); however, for cakes with 40%-50% substitution, the ratings for texture and overall likeability were negatively influenced. Statistically significant differences were noted for taste (P=0.034) and texture (P<.001), while colour and aroma differences were not provable as statistically significant. It was concluded that OFSP substitution at rates of 30% or less improved the nutritional quality without a reduction in sensory appeal, consistent with a current trend in health-based product development. This study has shown that OFSP has potential for utilisation in bakery products to improve nutritional quality while also reducing post-harvest waste and, at the same time, supporting local agricultural practices.

Aquaponics: A Sustainable Approach to Integrated Fish and Plant Farming

2025-07-15T18:11:10+01:00

Achieving food and nutritional security in East Africa (EA) and the world at large is a global goal. While efforts have been made to improve traditional food production systems, hunger and nutritional insecurity still exist. Aquaponics is a novel technology that holds promising potential to provide food and improve human nutrition by producing both fish and plants. The success of aquaponics is attributed to the beneficial symbiotic relationship among fish, plants, and nitrifying bacteria. Furthermore, independent standalone recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) and hydroponic systems still face challenges that can be overcome by integrating them into a closed single system. Additionally, alternative economical and ecologically sustainable feed sources are on the rise, with considerable attention being given to black soldier fly larvae (BSFL). For the sustainability of aquaponic systems, water quality parameters such as pH, ammonia, dissolved oxygen, and temperature are critical. This review addresses the ongoing issue of food and nutritional insecurity in East Africa and globally, despite efforts to improve traditional food systems. Moreover, it focuses on overcoming the inefficiencies of standalone RAS and hydroponic systems by integrating them into a unified aquaponics system. Thus, it mainly covers the most used aquaponics systems. Media-filled beds (MFB), deep water culture (DWC), and nutrient film technique (NFT) comprise the hydroponic component, while fish rearing tanks form the remaining part. A total of 90 academic papers were reviewed, with 60 relevant to this study cited herein. These papers provided insights into challenges and innovations in aquaponics design and management for sustainability. In conclusion, scaling up fish-plant production in aquaponic systems is inherently linked to the size of the aquaculture setup and the availability of waste nutrients.