Evaluation of the Chemical Composition of Biscuits from Soybean (Glycine max), and Corn (Zea mays) Seeds Flour Blends Supplemented with Date Palm (Phoenix dactylifera) Pulp

Recently, there has been a growing interest in exploring alternative food sources to eliminate dietary deficiencies, improve food security, and promote health. This is particularly pertinent in communities whose staples have inadequate nutritional components essential for life. The nutritional and health conditions of individuals depend on various factors amongst which, the kind of foods available for consumption is paramount. This affects all consumers both young and old. Malnutrition especially undernutrition can contribute to global mortality, especially in regions that rely greatly on starchy staples with insufficient nutrients, and high cost of quality proteins. Prolonged consumption of diets with inadequate nutritional components could have devastating effects on both younger generation with increased nutrients needs, and the older persons with nutrient maintenance requirements. Consequently, to ensure adequate intake of essential nutrients, as well as food security, available staples can be utilized in various ways to maximize nutrient intake. Recent studies have investigated the abilities of different food crops to improve nutrient consumption [1, 2, 3]. The food crops used are mainly cereals, legumes and starchy roots and tubers. Common cereals include corn, millets, rice, sorghum, dawa, etc., legumes-soy beans, groundnuts, cowpea etc., and starchy roots and tubers-yam, cassava, potatoes etc. Traditionally, combined intake of these foods will ensure adequate intake of nutrients, but recently, nutrition transition and globalization have resulted in non-consumption of most indigenous foods, availability of foods from other regions, adoption of westernized diets with little economic power and a consequent consumption of cheap monotonous diets of poor nutrient profile. Many non-indigenous foods are available for consumption daily. They include highly processed confectionaries made mainly from refined wheat flours among which biscuits are topmost. Biscuit are small thin crisp bar made from unleavened dough. They are reported to be popular, convenient, and affordable snacks consumed by people of all ages [4, 5]. Common attractive features of biscuits include wider consumption, longer shelf-life, availability in varied taste and texture [6]. The ingredients have a great impact on the nutritional, textural, physical properties of biscuit; hence included inappropriate proportion to achieve the desired quality.

Traditionally wheat is most often used in biscuit making because of its unique baking properties; but it lacks essential nutrients and dietary fiber [7]. Thus, biscuits made from refined wheat flour whose amino acid composition is insufficient cannot support growth. It is reported that foods made from refined wheat and other cereals lack high-quality protein [8]. These biscuits are widely consumed by many daily. It is so much available and convenient that it has transited from snacks to the main and easy meals in many poor households. The implication of this transition is increased number of consumers with poor nutritional status. Fortunately, biscuits could serve as a vehicle for improving nutrition because of its favorite status. Updating the nutrient profile of biscuits by blending flours made from indigenous food crops could improve the food security status of these consumers. Soybeans for instance is a legume that has significant protein content, and corn has easy carbohydrates and fiber, both are food crops with varied nutrient composition that can complement to supply adequate nutrients to consumers. Cereals are low in lysine, and have sufficient methionine and cysteine, while legumes are rich in lysine but lack methionine and cysteine [9]. Cereal: legume ratio is particularly beneficial in plant-based diets to improve overall protein quality by ensuring both essential amino acids are present to prevent protein-energy malnutrition [10]. The addition of date palm pulp will improve vitamins, minerals, and fiber value of the biscuits. Consequently, this study produced biscuits made from blends of flours from soy beans, and corn seeds, pulp from date palm and evaluated the proximate (protein, fat, ash, crude fiber, moisture, carbohydrate), minerals (calcium, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus and iron), vitamins (Beta-Carotene, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin C), and anti-nutrient (phytate, tannins, flavonoids, saponin, oxalate) compositions to ascertain their contribution to adequate and varied diets.