This study investigated the potential of decolourised Moringa oleifera leaf powder (D-MOLP) in cookies to meet consumer demand for healthier food options, addressing the issue of low acceptability due to its green colour. D-MOLP and its non-decolourised counterpart (ND-MOLP) were incorporated into wheat flour to produce cookies. The results showed that neither decolourisation nor addition level (2.5 or 7.5%) significantly affected water activity or flour functionality, though slight differences in cookie colour were observed. The Moringa-enriched cookies exhibited an improved spread ratio as well as higher protein, phenolic content, antioxidant activity, and in vitro protein digestibility compared to control cookies. The detected phenolic acids included chlorogenic, ferulic, and fumaric acids, with the D-MOLP cookies showing superior nutritional properties, likely due to nutrient concentration and reduced antinutrients. Notably, glutamic acid was the major amino acid in all the cookies, but only lysine significantly increased across the cookie types. This suggests D-MOLP could be a promising alternative for food enrichment. Future research should address the consumer acceptability, volatile components, and shelf-life of D-MOLP-enriched cookies.

In recent years, entomophagy—the practice of consuming insects—has gained attention as a potential solution to challenges in traditional animal sources. The house cricket, or A. Domesticus, is a leading option as a sustainable alternative due to its nutritional benefits and low environmental impact. However, the relationship between cricket feed composition and the nutritional profile is a critical area of investigation. This study explores the connection between locally available feeds and the nutrient composition of house crickets, providing valuable insights for farmers, food chemists and nutritionists. This study explored the effects of five distinct diets—soybean, sunflower, amaranth leaves, sweet potato leaves and a commercial chicken-based feed —on cricket growth and nutritional outcomes. The findings revealed a correlation between feed composition and cricket nutrient profiles, with significant implications for manipulating insect diet to improve their nutritional quality. Furthermore, the study uncovered the limitations of fresh leaf-based diets, prompting a reconsideration of optimal feed formulations for cricket rearing. The absence of detectable heavy metals in both feeds and crickets aligns with food safety standards, These results not only contribute to our understanding of insect metabolism but also offer practical applications in the design of cricket-based feeds to enhance the nutritional value and safety of crickets-based foods, a topic of increasing relevance in the context of global food security and sustainable nutrition.