Bread consumption pattern and the potential of orange-fleshed sweetpotato-composite bread in Ghana

Bread is consumed by most Ghanaians. Wheat flour and refined sugar are the main raw materials in bread making. These key raw  materials are imported, thereby causing the local currency to consistently lose value. Therefore, developing bread recipes with locally available raw materials such as root and tuber crops is of the essence. The study assessed bread consumption patterns in Ghana; potential consumer preference for orange-fleshed sweetpotato (OFSP) puree-wheat flour composite bread; consumers’ willingness to buy and bakers’ willingness to bake this composite bread. Cross-sectional surveys were conducted in four regions of Ghana: Accra, Ashanti, Northern, and Upper East regions; data were collected using a semi-structured questionnaire. Consumers (n = 651) and bakers (n = 77) were randomly selected to participate in the study. Data were analyzed using descriptive scores procedure in IBM Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 20. Almost all the consumer-respondents (96.50%; n = 628) indicated that they eat bread. Based on the frequency of bread consumption, 54% of respondents consumed bread daily, 18% once a week and 28% twice or more per week. The preferred bread types across the regions were: tea, butter, and “sugar” bread. Respondents across the regions consumed at least one type of bread with tea bread being the most consumed in the Upper East (n = 153; 39.30%) and Northern (n = 58; 38%) regions.  However, butter bread was the most consumed in the Greater Accra (n =17; 36%) while consumerrespondents in the Ashanti region (n  = 24; 38.70%) indicated they consume more than one type. The least consumed bread type across all the regions was composite and  bran (brown) bread types. The consumers’ willingness to buy the OFSP-based bread further increased by 8.3% when they were  informed about the nutritional benefits of OFSPbased bread. Thus, the OFSP-based wheat flour composite bread could have a higherpotential of being adopted into the Ghanaian community irrespective of regional demarcation to increase dietary intake of vitamin A. This would contribute to efforts to find a sustainable way of increasing dietary intake of vitamin A, particularly children in Ghana. Key words: Baker, composite-bread, consumer, Ghana, orange-fleshed sweetpotato, puree, survey, vitamin

Types of indigenous vegetables consumed, preparation, preferences and perceived benefits in Ghana

Indigenous vegetables (IVs) are rich sources of essential nutrients, particularly vitamins and minerals, and other non-nutritive phytochemicals. IVs play a critical role in the food culture of the Ghanaian people. Despite their importance, they have over the years been mostly associated with the resource-poor. In this study, the types of IVs, preparation preferences, frequency of consumption and some perceived benefits ascribed by some Ghanaian consumers (n = 1393) were investigated in a cross-sectional survey. Descriptive analysis and a chi-square test of independence were conducted to summarise and determine the relationship between gender, age and consumption frequency of the IVs. The study identified okra (Abelmoschus esculentus), cocoyam (Xanthosoma sagittifolium) leaves, jute mallow (Corchorus olitorius) and garden egg (Solanum melongena) as the popular IVs consumed by respondents. Among these, about 13.3% of women and 15.3% of men indicated they consume okra. Eight per cent of the women respondents and 6.7% of the men consumed jute mallow. Almost 57% of the respondents said the IVs were used to prepare stew and soup. More than a third (39%) of the respondents indicated that they consumed the IVs either daily or more than once a week. Women respondents’ frequency of IVs consumption was significantly different [X2 (4, n = 1393) = 30.11, p = 0.000] from the men. The frequency of consumption of IVs for the elderly was significantly higher [X2 (12, n = 1393) = 30.53, p = 0.002] as compared to the younger respondents. The main perceived benefits of IVs were nutrition- and health-related. The major barriers to the consumption of IVs were cost, non-availability, palatability and cultural. The IVs were largely wet-cooked and consumed as stews or sauces and soups. These findings form good bases for further empirical studies on the nutritional and other health-benefiting attributes of the specific IVs found in this study for sustainable promotion and utilisation in Ghana

Gnetum gnemon L.Gnetaceae

Cambodia: khalet, voe, (general), klot (Phnom Kulen). Indonesia: belinjo, melinjo (general), gnemo, rukiti (Molluccas), ka’cuang (Dayak Kanayatn), ko’nyah (Enggano ethnic in Sumatra), lewehuka, mlinjo, morahuka (Wonani Island), tangkil (Betawi, Javanese, Sundanese). Malaysia: amaninjau (general), dodah (Bidayuh), sabong (Bintulu), belinjau, garintul, meninjau, melindju, malinju, sabe, sangkok, tankil (Peninsular), sabong (Iban). Philippines: bago (general), bago, magatungal (Lanao, Cotabato), bago, bagu (Bataan, Tayabas, Camarines), banago (Visaya, Bohol), kunan (Davao), nabo (Bicol). Papua New Guinea: ambian, ambiamtupe (Maring), doro (Valaila), genda (Buna), suffitz (Yalu), tu-a (Suku). Singapura: melindjo. Thailand: puk miang (general), pee sae, phak miang (Thai), liang, miang phak kaniang, pak kaliang, peedae, phak (Southern Thailand). Vietnam: bet, gam cay, rau danh. English: Spanish koint fir (Asyira et al. 2016; Cadiz and Florido 2001; Chuakul et al. 2004; Manangka et al. 2017; Markgraf 1948; Neamsuvan et al. 2013; Rahayu et al. 2019; Royyani et al. 2018; Sunarti and Rugayah 2013; Ting et al. 2017; Walker 2016)