by Selamawit Negash, Dilu Shaleka and Mogessie Ashenafi
Original Research
Parts of the northern regions of Ethiopia have suffered from repeated draught and chronic food insecurity for decades. Foodborne diseases and malnutrition, particularly affect infants and young children. This study assessed the extent of food insecurity in low-income households, food safety practices therein and nutritional status of under five children in Adigrat town, Tigray region, Ethiopia. A total of 342 households were selected randomly from the town’s six kebeles (districts). A cross-sectional survey was carried out among randomly selected households in the study area. Moreover, Household food insecurity access scale was used to assess food security status of households. Household food safety was assessed regarding food handling, personal hygiene and water sanitation. Nutritional status of under-five children was assessed using anthropometric measurements. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 25. Results were presented using descriptive statistics. Only 2.2% of the households were food secure. All respondents were mothers, and the majority (54%) were older than 45 years. About 97% of them did not have a paid occupation. About 46% of households had four or more members. Most respondents obtained food for the family through daily house-to-house begging or by doing petty jobs for other families. Most households were mildly (26.7%), moderately (27%) or severely food insecure (44.3%). Respondents had poor level of knowledge (37.6%) and practice (37.1%) in food handling, personal hygiene and water sanitation, although positive attitude towards food safety was good (91.7%). Of the under-five children in the study households, 28.8% were thin, 56.6% were stunted, 65.3% were underweight and 48.3% were undernourished. Urgent supply of supplementary nutrients to severely malnourished children is required. Government support to food insecure households through productive safety-net programs is recommended. It is important to give training by health extension workers to food insecure households on food safety and nutrition.
Journal of Food Security. 2022, 10(1), 32-43. DOI: 10.12691/jfs-10-1-5
Pub. Date: March 29, 2022
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by Mohamed Abd alrazik Desogi, Fatima Abbas Khalid, Awadia Khojali Mohamed, Asma Mahmoud Hamza, Sarah Salih Mohammed, Abdualmoniem Omer Abdalla, Isameldin Mustafa Mohamed, Mahgoub Ali Adam and Abdalla Ali Mohammed
Original Research
Background: Food insecurity still a major public health problem in Sudan. This study aim to assess the effect household food insecurity - which was about 38.7% of household in the study area - on the nutritional status of children less than five years in north Kassala localities, Kassala State, eastern Sudan. Method: The study was cross-sectional including 445 household distributed in 16 villages using specially designed questionnaire. Multi-cluster random technique was used to collect data. Only HH with children under five years were included in the study. Results: Stunting, wasting and underweight were reported in 52.1%, 35.6% and 53.9% respectively. The relationship of nutrition status of children and HH food security was statistically non-significant. Conclusion: The prevalence of malnutrition among children in the study area was very high. Improving household food security may be necessary but not sufficient to improve the nutritional status. Other risk factors such as maternal education, avoiding certain types of food and controlling childhood infections must be corrected.
Journal of Food Security. 2022, 10(1), 25-31. DOI: 10.12691/jfs-10-1-4
Pub. Date: March 27, 2022
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by Angélique Espérance Lembella Boumba, Augustin Aimé Lebonguy, Chancelvy Pahivelle Limingui Polo, Mickaelle Bokamba Moukala and Joseph Goma-Tchimbakala
Original Research
This study was carried out to determine the hygienic quality of six samples of fermented peppers of different ages sold in the markets of Brazzaville in the Republic of Congo and used for human consumption. To do so, decimal dilution method was performed and only the obtained isolates on Mac conkey agar were identified by sequencing of 16s rRNA gene. Then the phylogenic relationship of the sequences obtained was verified on Phylogeny.fr. The principal component analysis and the similarity dendrogram made it possible to see the resemblance between the different samples. The results showed that the FMAT load varied from 2.33.105 -1.2.107cfu/g with a very significant difference (P <0.001). Only the EB4 sample is of unsatisfactory quality for this parameter. The loads of total and faecal coliforms in EB4 were above the threshold values of Directive 2005/2073/EC relating to the microbiological criteria applicable to foodstuffs. Staphylococcus aureus was absent in all samples except EB4 where the microbial density is 2.6.102 cfu/g. The NCBI blast of the sequences obtained made it possible to identify the following bacterial species with a percentage of similarity equal to or greater than 99%: Enterobacter kobei, E. mori, Klebsiella Pneumoniae and Salmonella Enterica. This work showed that the quality of the peppers fermented depends on fermentation time. Older fermented peppers are of good quality compared to younger ones.
Journal of Food Security. 2021, 10(1), 17-24. DOI: 10.12691/jfs-10-1-3
Pub. Date: March 11, 2022
1976 Views5 Downloads
by Gilbert Owiah Sampson, Emmanuel Ohene Afoakwa, Oluwakemi Cyrilla Ogunseye and Daniel Tetteh Amanquah
Original Research
Response surface methodology and central composite rotatable design for K=2 was employed to analyze the combined effect of sugar concentration and acid balancing on the soluble solids, refractive index, water insoluble solids total acidity and pH of watermelon (Citrullus vulgaris) jam. Regression models were developed to predict the effects of the processing parameters on the studied indices. Significant interactions were observed between all the factors with high regression coefficients (61.78-98.34%). There was a significant (p≤0.05) influence of the quadratic factors of pH and sugar concentration as well as the linear factor of pH on the soluble solids content, pH and refractive index but no significant influence of total acidity and water insoluble solids on watermelon jams. However, the linear and quadratic factors of pH showed no significant (p≤0.05) influence on the refractive index of the watermelon jams. Sugar concentration influenced most of the quality indices whereas pH had only marginal influence on the studied parameters.
Journal of Food Security. 2021, 10(1), 10-16. DOI: 10.12691/jfs-10-1-2
Pub. Date: February 23, 2022
2363 Views22 Downloads
by Andrew-Essien Elizabeth. Esekong, Bisong Francis Ebuta, Anwana Eno Deborah, Ndiyo Ayara Ndem, Okon Asuquo. E and Akintoye Ayorinde Akintoye
Original Research
Human security remains the bedrock of all sustainable development goals. However, a central fulcrum that ties human security to sustainable development is food security. Food security encapsulates environmental and capital resources invested through food production to determine the viability of market prices access, availability, utilization and stability. The dynamics of food security has affected the progressive development of developing countries over the years. The environmental and socio-economic cost of the Covid-19 is evident in the economy- shut-down and its attendant consequences for human security. This paper utilizes situation analysis to project the food production trends in Africa to highlight the imperatives of its re-prioritization. It asserts that failure to mainstream the viability of support-systems to cope with the ripple effects of pandemic-stressors resulting in declined productivity and subsequently economic losses that exacerbate the pandemic-influence to further environmental, health and financial crises. These losses present grave consequences of the attendant effects on food sufficiency in the stride to meeting the sustainable development goals by 2030. The recommended options include the development of cost-effective strategies that include the removal of stringent national and regional trade policies. African leaders must embrace the fact that drivers of food insecurity, such as the current pandemic and associated policies go beyond national jurisdictions, instead it demands a multi-stakeholder response. Importantly, the adequacies and relevance of food security strategies such as the Integrated Food security strategies in Sub-Saharan Africa developed in close association with international donors needs to be re-appraised. Questions of 'one size fits all' should be revised as uniformity is inapplicable across the sub-region, due to contrasting governance structures. Lastly, reprioritizing public and private investments in agriculture are necessary for food sufficiency within the continent if the aim is to end all forms of hunger and malnutrition by 2030.
Journal of Food Security. 2021, 10(1), 1-9. DOI: 10.12691/jfs-10-1-1
Pub. Date: February 07, 2022
2238 Views6 Downloads