EVALUATION OF THE MICROBIAL QUALITY AND CONSUMER ACCEPTABILITY OF PEANUT-BASED READY-TO-USE THERAPEUTIC FOODS (RUTF) ENRICHED WITH MIGRATORY LOCUST (LOCUSTA MIGRATORIA) POWDER

• O.A. Akande

  A.O. Department of Food Science and Technology, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria Corresponding

  Author

• M.O. Oluwamukomi

  A.O. Department of Food Science and Technology, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria Corresponding

  Author

• O.F. Osundahunsi

  A.O. Department of Food Science and Technology, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria Corresponding

  Author

• O.S. Ijarotimi

  A.O. Department of Food Science and Technology, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria Corresponding

  Author

Insects are gaining increasing attention as a sustainable alternative protein for humans to combat malnutrition. The study was aimed to develop peanut-based therapeutic foods using migratory locust powder substituted with milk powder as protein source. The microbiological quality and consumer acceptability of the therapeutic foods produced with different substitution ratios of milk powder and migratory locust powder and other standard ingredients were determined. The sensory acceptability of the formulated therapeutic foods was determining using fifty healthy female and male untrained panelists on a 9-point hedonic scale. The colour of the RUTFs were also accessed by employing a colorimeter (PCE-CSM 2). At day zero, the products were cultured for aerobic mesophilic bacteria (AMB), Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella, Escherichia coli, Clostridium perfringens, yeast and moulds using standard methods and their respective agars. The therapeutic foods were further stored for three months (93 days) at room temperature (25 C) to determine the microbial stability of the RUTFs. The products were well accepted in terms of all organoleptic parameters except aroma when compared with RUTF (the control) with 30% milk powder. The colour of the therapeutic foods tended towards a darker shade with incorporation of migratory locust powder. Absence of pathogenic microorganisms was recorded throughout the 93-days of storage. Although AMB and yeast and moulds increased with increase in storage time, the microbes were within Médecins Sans Frontières/ United Nations Children's Fund (MSF/UNICEF) permissible limits. Hence, microbiologically safe and nutritious peanut-based therapeutic foods can be developed using migratory locust powder as an alternative protein source.

1. O.A. Akande, A.O. Department of Food Science and Technology, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria Corresponding

   A.O. Department of Food Science and Technology, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria Corresponding

2. M.O. Oluwamukomi, A.O. Department of Food Science and Technology, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria Corresponding

   A.O. Department of Food Science and Technology, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria Corresponding

3. O.F. Osundahunsi, A.O. Department of Food Science and Technology, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria Corresponding

   A.O. Department of Food Science and Technology, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria Corresponding

4. O.S. Ijarotimi, A.O. Department of Food Science and Technology, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria Corresponding

   A.O. Department of Food Science and Technology, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria Corresponding

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