Substitution of maize with sorghum and millets in traditional processing of Mahewu, a non-alcoholic fermented cereal beverage

There is growing interest in Sub-Saharan Africa for substituting maize with climate-smart crops like sorghum and millets in local food processing. We conducted a survey to explore current variations in processing and consumption practices for Mahewu, a traditionally fermented cereal beverage from Zi...

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Main Authors: Nsingo-Kudita, Sakile, Schoustra, Sijmen, Mubaiwa, Juliet, Smid, Eddy J., Linnemann, Anita R.
Format: Journal Article
Language:Inglés
Published: Oxford University Press 2024
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/137175
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author Nsingo-Kudita, Sakile
Schoustra, Sijmen
Mubaiwa, Juliet
Smid, Eddy J.
Linnemann, Anita R.
author_browse Linnemann, Anita R.
Mubaiwa, Juliet
Nsingo-Kudita, Sakile
Schoustra, Sijmen
Smid, Eddy J.
author_facet Nsingo-Kudita, Sakile
Schoustra, Sijmen
Mubaiwa, Juliet
Smid, Eddy J.
Linnemann, Anita R.
author_sort Nsingo-Kudita, Sakile
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description There is growing interest in Sub-Saharan Africa for substituting maize with climate-smart crops like sorghum and millets in local food processing. We conducted a survey to explore current variations in processing and consumption practices for Mahewu, a traditionally fermented cereal beverage from Zimbabwe. Processing involved cooking a cereal porridge, adding cereal flour or malt as a starter ingredient, and fermenting for 12–48 h. Ingredient availability was the main driver for porridge ingredient choice (42% of respondents) with the most preferred being maize (55% of respondents), pearl millet (22%) and sorghum (9%). Final product taste had the most influence on starter ingredient choice, with most respondents preferring pearl millet flour (23%), finger millet malt (22%), wheat flour (17%), and sorghum malt (13%). Our study proves that maize can be replaced with sorghum and millet in Mahewu processing, thus increasing the climate-resilience of future food systems, and demonstrates that traditional practices harbour clues for adapting current practices.
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publishDate 2024
publishDateRange 2024
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publisherStr Oxford University Press
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spelling CGSpace1371752025-12-08T10:06:44Z Substitution of maize with sorghum and millets in traditional processing of Mahewu, a non-alcoholic fermented cereal beverage Nsingo-Kudita, Sakile Schoustra, Sijmen Mubaiwa, Juliet Smid, Eddy J. Linnemann, Anita R. cereals climate change climate resilience fermentation food processing maize millets sorghum There is growing interest in Sub-Saharan Africa for substituting maize with climate-smart crops like sorghum and millets in local food processing. We conducted a survey to explore current variations in processing and consumption practices for Mahewu, a traditionally fermented cereal beverage from Zimbabwe. Processing involved cooking a cereal porridge, adding cereal flour or malt as a starter ingredient, and fermenting for 12–48 h. Ingredient availability was the main driver for porridge ingredient choice (42% of respondents) with the most preferred being maize (55% of respondents), pearl millet (22%) and sorghum (9%). Final product taste had the most influence on starter ingredient choice, with most respondents preferring pearl millet flour (23%), finger millet malt (22%), wheat flour (17%), and sorghum malt (13%). Our study proves that maize can be replaced with sorghum and millet in Mahewu processing, thus increasing the climate-resilience of future food systems, and demonstrates that traditional practices harbour clues for adapting current practices. 2024-03 2024-01-04T20:39:00Z 2024-01-04T20:39:00Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/137175 en Open Access Oxford University Press Kudita, Sakile; Schoustra, Sijmen; Mubaiwa, Juliet; Smid, Eddy J.; and Linnemann, Anita R. 2024. Substitution of maize with sorghum and millets in traditional processing of Mahewu, a non-alcoholic fermented cereal beverage. International Journal of Food Science and Technology 59(3): 1421-1431. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijfs.16887
spellingShingle cereals
climate change
climate resilience
fermentation
food processing
maize
millets
sorghum
Nsingo-Kudita, Sakile
Schoustra, Sijmen
Mubaiwa, Juliet
Smid, Eddy J.
Linnemann, Anita R.
Substitution of maize with sorghum and millets in traditional processing of Mahewu, a non-alcoholic fermented cereal beverage
title Substitution of maize with sorghum and millets in traditional processing of Mahewu, a non-alcoholic fermented cereal beverage
title_full Substitution of maize with sorghum and millets in traditional processing of Mahewu, a non-alcoholic fermented cereal beverage
title_fullStr Substitution of maize with sorghum and millets in traditional processing of Mahewu, a non-alcoholic fermented cereal beverage
title_full_unstemmed Substitution of maize with sorghum and millets in traditional processing of Mahewu, a non-alcoholic fermented cereal beverage
title_short Substitution of maize with sorghum and millets in traditional processing of Mahewu, a non-alcoholic fermented cereal beverage
title_sort substitution of maize with sorghum and millets in traditional processing of mahewu a non alcoholic fermented cereal beverage
topic cereals
climate change
climate resilience
fermentation
food processing
maize
millets
sorghum
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/137175
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