Nutritional composition of dried Gapal, a highly nutritious food based on fermented cereal and milk

Abstract

Gapal, a fermented milk–cereal mixture is a foodstuff that is starting to spread and become part of people’s food habits in Burkina Faso. However, the chemical composition of this food is not available. The objective of this study was to determine the nutritional composition of dried Gapal. Samples were purchased from five cities of Burkina Faso. The nutritional composition of dried Gapal was analyzed according to standard methods, with parameters including protein content, total lipids, carbohydrates, free amino acids, minerals and phytic acid content were determined using standards methods. The moisture content of the samples ranged from 7.61 to 38.53 g/100 g of sample while the pH and acidity level are ranged from 4.32 to 5.48 and 0.20 to 0.75 g of lactic acid/100 g of sample, respectively. The results indicate that the lipid content is ranged from 0.76 to 5.53%, while the protein content varies from 5.47 to 9.63%. The carbohydrate content of Gapal ranges from 84.30 to 92.00%, and the ash content ranged from 1.11 to 2.10%. Dried Gapal contained potassium (214.18 mg/100 g), calcium (66.74 mg/100 g), magnesium (34.04 mg/100 g), zinc (0.80 mg/100 g), iron (8.14 mg/100 g), copper (0.44 mg/100 g) and manganese (0.85 mg/100 g). Only free proline (41.88 mg/100 g) and free lysine (43.62 mg/100 g) were detected in all the samples. Dried Gapal exhibited a notable phytic acid content of 365.92 mg/100 g. the nutritional composition exhibited variations following different sampling sites and producers, which underscores the necessity for further analysis. These data will be instrumental in enhancing the Burkina Faso food composition database.