Investigation of the Antimicrobial Preservatives in the Dairy Product (Labneh)

The aim of this study was to investigate the presence and levels of antimicrobial preservatives (natamycin, benzoic acid and sorbic acid) in the dairy product, Labneh. One hundred and fifty Labneh samples of 10 different trademarks were collected from the Jordanian markets in January, April and July 2013 to be analyzed. The obtained results indicated that 30% of the samples contained natamycin, 20% contained sorbic acid, 10% contained benzoic acid, and none of the detected preservatives were found in 40% of the samples. Results revealed that the highest level of antimicrobial preservatives detected in the Labneh samples was benzoic acid, which ranged from 5.70 to 365.4 mg/kg, while natamycin ranged from 11.74 to 76.98 mg/kg and sorbic acid ranged from 77.08 to 321.6 mg/kg. None of the samples contained more than one preservative. This study demonstrated preservative addition and amount was made with no consideration of seasonal variation. Results also showed that Labneh samples produced in facilities that apply HACCP systems met the required conditions without the addition of any preservatives. Keywords: antimicrobial preservatives, natamycin, benzoic acid, sorbic acid, dairy product, Labne

Utilization of fish processing by-products for nutritional formulation of fish feed

Includes bibliographical references

The role of amylopectin linear chain length and branch density on susceptibility to amylolytic enzymes

The topic of carbohydrates and health is increasingly important in the minds of consumers, particularly in the area of glycemic index and slowly digesting starches. Starch, from the nutritional point of view, is categorized into rapidly digestible starch (RDS), slowly digestible starch (SDS), and resistant starch (RS). Evidence has shown that human glycemic response is highly correlated with the amount of RDS in food products, while SDS and RS are associated with benefits resulting from slow release of glucose and insulin. Thus, starch digestion properties have been implicated in the health problems of diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular disease. The relationship between molecular fine structure of cooked maize starch and its rapid or slow digestion property were investigated. Specifically, this study tested the hypothesis that amylopectins with high proportion of short α-1, 6 branch chains have a slow digestion rate and corresponding glucose yield. Single and double mutant isolated maize starches prepared by cooking a dilute suspension and processing quickly to minimize retrogradation. Suspensions were digested with porcine α-amylase for 4 h and aliquots were taken at different time intervals. Based on chromatographic analysis of the debranched samples, starch samples were classified into 2 categories: samples with high proportion of long B chains (i.e. branched) but low proportion of short chains (i.e.unbranched), and samples with low proportion of long B chains but high proportion of short chains and branching density. Digestion profiles of the samples showed that samples with high proportion of short chains had a slower digestion rate as opposed to those with high proportion of long chains. Debranched profiles of α-amylase hydrolysates revealed that the initial attack on amylopectin occurred at the external chains and independently at longer internal chain segments between branches. Digestion of the α-amylase hydrolysates with glucoamylase (fungal amyloglucosidase) further showed an inverse relationship between glucose production and the proportion of short chains and branch density. Consequently, genetic starch mutants of maize have a good potential to provide raw starch materials with unique nutritional qualities

Novel Gluten-Free Cinnamon Rolls by Substituting Wheat Flour with Resistant Starch, Lupine and Flaxseed Flour

Celiac disease (CD) is an immunological mediated disorder that occurs to genetically susceptible individuals who suffer from gluten consumption. Therefore, the most effective treatment of CD is a life-long gluten-free diet. This study aimed to produce a nutritious gluten-free cinnamon roll, where resistant starch and lupine flour were used instead of wheat flour, in addition to 10% flaxseed flour and a fixed amount of hydrocolloid (1% xanthan gum). Eight different gluten-free cinnamon roll treatments (T1–T8) were produced with different ratios of resistant starch and lupine flour according to the following percentages (85:5, 80:10, 75:15, 70:20, 65:25, 60:30, 55:35 and 50:40, respectively). The proximate analysis, physical properties, color measurements and sensory evaluation of all cinnamon roll treatments and flours were determined. It was found that lupine and flaxseed flours in all different treatments had significantly (p ≤ 0.05) higher levels of ash, protein, lipid and crude fiber compared to wheat flour treatment (control treatment). However, carbohydrate levels were significantly (p ≤ 0.05) higher in control treatment compared with treatments 3–8. Gluten-free cinnamon rolls had significantly (p ≤ 0.05) higher levels of unsaturated fatty acids (oleic acid, linoleic acid and linolenic acid) than control. Further, there were significant differences in lightness (L*), redness (a*) and yellowness (b*) color values between the gluten-free and control treatments. The control cinnamon roll significantly (p ≤ 0.05) had the highest level of lightness and the lowest level of redness. The sensory evaluation obtained by consumer evaluation indicated that control cinnamon rolls significantly (p ≤ 0.05) received the highest score in overall impression, overall flavor, hardness and aftertaste. However, treatment 5 significantly (p ≤ 0.05) received the highest score in all the sensory scores in comparison with other gluten-free treatments. It is possible to develop a quality gluten-free cinnamon roll with respect to nutritional value manifested in higher levels of protein, fibers, unsaturated acids and prebiotics with acceptable sensory attributes

PHCOG MAG.: Research Article The Postprandial Hypoglycemic Activity of Fenugreek Seed and Seeds' Extract in Type 2 Diabetics: A Pilot Study

ABSTRACT Trigonella foenum-graecum L. is directly related to the traditional use. Trigonella foenum-graecum L, have been reported to be beneficial for treating type 2 diabetes (T2D). The study was conducted to investigate the postprandial hypoglycemic effect of fenugreek seeds on patients with T2D. Pretest -posttest control group design was used to test the hypothesis that fenugreek may have a hypoglycemic effect on blood sugar. One hundred sixtysix D2T patients were assigned into three groups: FG0 (control group: placebo drink), FG2.5 (2.5g of fenugreek), and FG5 (5g of fenugreek). Participants were instructed to drink the extract and chew the seeds. Postprandial plasma glucose level was measured before and 2-hours after the administration of the treatment. Accounting for gender, age, education, physical activity, body mass index, glycemic control, and medication, patients in FG5 group showed the greatest decrease in postprandial glucose with a pretest-posttest difference (D) of -41 ± 6.1 mg/dl. Two-hour plasma glucose dropped for patients in FG2.5, however, the drop was not statistically different from that noticed in the placebo group (D = -24.8 ± 4.9 mg/dl vs. -9.8 ± 2.2 mg/dl respectively). Fenugreek seeds appear to have a significant hypoglycemic activity in T2D patients

Evaluation of food quality and safety parameters and food safety knowledge and practices of food handlers at fast foods restaurants at universities in Jordan during COVID-19

The quality and the safety of the foods that are served at fast foods restaurants and their effect on the consumer health could become a matter of concern during COVID-19. Therefore, the objectives of this study were i) to evaluate the quality and safety of raw foods, suitability and availability of manufacturing places, physical facilities, drinking water and waste management system, and processing conditions, and ii) to assess the knowledge, attitudes, practices regarding food safety and hygienic practices among food handlers at fast foods restaurants in the different universities in Jordan during COVID-19. The study was conducted in 12 fast foods restaurants of 3 different universities in Jordan which are located in different places in Jordan. A desirable practice was given a score of one while no score will be allotted for an undesirable practice through using a standard questionnaire for all the food establishments. This was used to compare with the maximum score obtainable for that relevant operation and the percentage scores was calculated for each operation. Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) of the data was performed to study the significant differences at P ≤ 0.05 in all the evaluated properties among the food establishments in the different universities. The results showed that low percentage scores were obtained with 68%, 75%, 32% and 56% for the production area, waste management, product evaluation (chemical, microbial) and food safety program application, respectively. Also, it was found that there were insignificant differences at P ≤ 0.05 among different food serving establishments in different universities in all the safety properties. This means that all the food establishments in all the universities suffer from the same problems with the same degree. As a conclusion, more work should be done to produce safe food in the different food establishments that were studied in the different universities

Correction: AL-Othman et al. Development and Characterization of Nutritious Gluten-Free Doughnuts with Lupin and Inulin Flours. <i>Foods</i> 2022, <i>11</i>, 3237

The authors wish to make corrections to the order of the authors [...

Improving the Functionality of Lentil–Casein Protein Complexes through Structural Interactions and Water Kefir-Assisted Fermentation

Highly nutritious lentil proteins (LP) have recently attracted interest in the food industry. However, due to their low solubility, extensive application of LP is severely limited. This study describes a new and successful method for overcoming this challenge by improving the nutritional–functional properties of LP, particularly their solubility and protein quality. By combining protein complexation with water kefir-assisted fermentation, the water solubility of native LP (~58%) increases to over 86% upon the formation of lentil–casein protein complexes (LCPC). Meanwhile, the surface charge increases to over −40 mV, accompanied by alterations in secondary and tertiary structures, as shown by Fourier-transform infrared and UV-vis spectra, respectively. In addition, subjecting the novel LCPC to fermentation increases the protein digestibility from 76% to over 86%, due to the reduction in micronutrients that have some degree of restriction with respect to protein digestibility. This approach could be an effective and practical way of altering plant-based proteins