Fruit consumption and storage practices among rural households in Chamwino district, Dodoma, Tanzania
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Date
2023-07
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
African Journal of Food Science
Abstract
Fruit consumption is still a challenge in many parts of Africa, and hence micronutrient deficiency
continues to be a serious problem in the continent. This study was conducted between December 2017
and May 2018 in Chinoje and Mzula villages in Chamwino district, Dodoma to assess availability of fruit,
consumption, storage practices and nutrient content. People responsible for food preparation were
interviewed from 345 randomly selected households by using semi-structured and food frequency
questionnaires. Multiple logistic regression model was used to determine the relationship between
frequency of fruit consumption and household socio-economic features by using SPSS. Laboratory
analysis was conducted to determine nutrient content of baobab, which was the most consumed fruit.
Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was used to determine if significant variations existed in the nutritional
quality of baobab fruit by using SAS. Only 35% of the households consumed fruit daily, while the
majority consumed fruit from one to three days in a week. Monthly income, household size and
headship significantly affected fruit consumption at p<0.05. Most of the baobab fruits were stored in
polypropylene sacks (77.4%), followed by plastic buckets (3.3%) and others as shelled fruit (18.4%).
Significant losses in Vitamin C and total carotenoids were observed in baobab fruits that were stored in
sacks. Storage of baobab fruit in plastic bucket is recommended for quality maintenance of nutrients.
Description
Full Length Research Paper
Keywords
Fruit availability, consumption, micronutrients, food frequency, storage
Citation
DOI: 10.5897/AJFS2023.2253 Article Number: CEDC06470886