Provitamin A retention and sensory acceptability of amahewu, a non‐alcoholic cereal‐based beverage made with provitamin A‐biofortified maize

BACKGROUND Vitamin A deficiency is a major public health problem in sub‐Saharan Africa. Amahewu is a popular southern African lactic acid fermented non‐alcoholic maize‐based beverage, which is deficient in vitamin A. In this study, provitamin A retention and sensory acceptability of amahewu processed using provitamin A‐biofortified maize and three types of inoculums during fermentation (malted maize, wheat bran and Lactobacillus starter culture) were investigated. RESULTS The total provitamin A content of amahewu samples, estimated as β‐carotene, β‐cryptoxanthin and α‐carotene content, ranged from 3.3 to 3.8 g kg −1 (dry weight). Provitamin A was substantially retained (79– 90% β‐carotene equivalent) in amahewu after fermentation. Amahewu samples prepared with added starter cultures had the lowest retention of provitamin A. Consumers (approx. 69%) liked provitamin A‐biofortified amahewu either moderately or very much. Principal component analysis of amahewu sensory data showed that 71% of variation was due to maize types and 18% of variation could be due to the inoculum used during fermentation. Amahewu samples prepared using provitamin A‐biofortified maize were slightly more liked (mean score: 7.0 ± 1.2) compared to those of white maize reference samples. The use of starter culture combined with either malted maize or wheat bran as inoculum during fermentation improved the taste and aroma of amahewu and hence its acceptability. CONCLUSION Provitamin A is substantially retained in amahewu after fermentation. The slightly high acceptability of amahewu prepared using provitamin A‐biofortified maize compared to that of white maize thus suggests that fermented product like amahewu can potentially be used to deliver provitamin A to vulnerable individuals. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry