Biofortification is an effective method to improve the nutritional content of crops and nutritional intake. Breeding for higher micronutrient mineral content in beans is correlated with an increase in phytic acid, a main inhibitor of mineral absorption in humans. Low phytic acid (lpa) beans have a 90% lower phytic acid content compared to conventional beans. This is the first study to investigate mineral and total phytic acid retention after preparing common household recipes from conventional, biofortified and lpa beans. Mineral retention was determined for two conventional, three biofortified and two lpa bean genotypes. Treatments included soaking, boiling (boiled beans) and refrying (bean paste). The average true retention of iron after boiling was 77.2–91.3%; for zinc 41.2–84.0%; and for phytic acid 49.9–85.9%. Soaking led to a significant decrease in zinc and total phytic acid after boiling and refrying, whereas for iron no significant differences were found. lpa beans did not exhibit a consistent pattern of difference in iron and phytic acid retention compared to the other groups of beans. However, lpa beans had a significantly lower retention of zinc compared to conventional and biofortified varieties (p < 0.05). More research is needed to understand the underlying factors responsible for the differences in retention between the groups of beans, especially the low retention of zinc. Combining the lpa and biofortification traits could further improve the nutritional benefits of biofortified beans, by decreasing the phytic acid:iron and zinc ratio in beans.

High kernel-zinc maize varieties are available to consumers in several countries in Latin America to contribute to increase the zinc intake of their populations. Minerals, phytic acid and amino acids retention were measured after processing six maize varieties including three high kernel-zinc, one quality protein maize and two conventional maize. Grain for each variety was processed into tortillas, arepas and mazamorra, common maize dishes in the region. To evaluate the effect of processing kernel-zinc maize varieties on zinc retention, varieties were grouped in zinc biofortified maize (ZBM) and non-ZBM. Iron, zinc, phytic acid, tryptophan and lysine concentrations in non-processed maize were 17.1–19.1 ​μg/g DW, 23.9–33.0 ​μg/g DW, 9.9–10.0 ​mg/g DW, 0.06–0.08% and 0.27–0.37%, respectively. In tortillas, the iron, zinc, phytic acid and lysine content did not change (p ​< ​0.05) compared to raw grain, while tryptophan decreased by 32%. True retention of iron in arepas and mazamorra was 43.9 and 60.0%, for zinc 36.8 and 41.3%, and for phytic acid 19.3 and 25.1%. Tortillas had higher zinc retention than arepas and mazamorra due to use of whole grain in the nixtamalization process. Therefore, to contribute to higher zinc intake, nixtamalized tortilla prepared with biofortified zinc maize is recommended. Additionally, promotion of whole grain flour to prepare arepas should be explored to enhance the intake of minerals that are usually confined to aleurone layers and germ.

• Zinc in rice endosperm moved to the outer layers during parboiling. • Zinc retention in parboiled rice was lower than non-parboiled rice after milling. • Biofortified rice had higher zinc retention than non-biofortified. • Biofortified rice could provide more than half of the zinc EAR% for children.

Iron and zinc deficiencies are global health problems, affecting mostly pregnant women and young children. In 2016, biofortified iron and zinc beans were introduced in Colombia. The incorporation of biofortified beans into the national school‐feeding program could facilitate adoption and potentially improve the nutritional status of large populations. However, biofortified beans have to be accepted in order to be consumed by populations. We therefore studied the sensory acceptability of two biofortified beans, BIO‐101 and BIO‐107, and local beans at schools with free feeding services in two departments of southwest Colombia. Measured on a five‐point Likert scale, the mean overall scores were 3.88 ± 0.64, 3.79 ± 0.74, and 3.81 ± 0.76, for BIO‐101, BIO‐107, and the local bean varieties, respectively, without significant differences. The children in Piendamó (Cauca) slightly preferred BIO‐107 over the local bean (p < .05) based on color, smell, and taste. The children in Caicedonia (Valle del Cauca) slightly favored the local bean over BIO‐107 (p < .05), regarding size, smell, and taste. Overall acceptability in schoolchildren was good for all beans without significant differences. This study advocates incorporation of accepted biofortified beans in the school‐feeding program, in order to reach large groups of schoolchildren and potentially improve their nutritional statuses.

Background: The consumption of foods such as sweet potato and cassava with high levels of carotenoids is a possible solution to reduce vitamin A deficiency. In this study, we evaluated the kinetics of thermal degradation of carotenoids. The content of carotenoids was quantified by high‐performance liquid chromatography, first in fresh material, then in flour and finally in bakery products using mixtures of wheat, sweet potato and cassava. The degree of acceptance of the bakery products by children was also assessed through a sensory acceptance test.Results: The study found that the degradation of carotenoid compounds in sweet potato followed first‐order kinetics and fitted the Arrhenius equation with correlations of R² > 0.9. The retention rates of all‐trans‐β‐carotene were 77%, 56% and 48% at cooking temperatures of 75, 85 and 95 °C respectively, during a cooking time of 20 min. The concentrations of all‐trans‐β‐carotene, after baking, for bread, cookies and cake were 15, 19 and 14 μg g⁻¹ db, respectively. In a sensory acceptance test carried out in a school, 47.6% of the boys and 79.2% of the girls rated the cookies made from a mixture of cassava, sweet potato and wheat flour with the indicator I like it a lot.Conclusion: The content of carotenoid compounds was reduced by exposure to high temperatures and long cooking times. The combinations of cooking time and temperature which minimized degradation of all‐trans‐β‐carotene occurred at 75 °C–20 min and 95 °C–10 min. All‐trans‐β‐carotene retentions for bread, cookies and cake were 25%, 15% and 11% respectively. The mixture of wheat, sweet potato and cassava flour can be considered in the development of cookies with positive contributions of all‐trans‐β‐carotenes and with a good acceptance by children between 9 and 13 years old. © 2023 The Authors. Journal of The Science of Food and Agriculture published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.

A ready-to-eat cereal processed by a twin-screw extrusion was formulated, using flour and bran from a quality protein maize (QPM) variety and a zinc biofortified rice. The effect of variation of the content of bran in the formulation on the physical quality of the extruded product was studied. The maize-rice meal mixtures contained rice and maize bran formulated at two levels, 25 and 30 % of the total; within the bran mixture the rice bran content was formulated at levels ranging from 0 to 10 %. Physical characteristics of the extrudates such as expansion ratio (ER) and crispness work indicator (WC), were determined. The treatments with lower content of rice bran showed a better behavior, in terms of the physical variables. The products with higher ER and lower WC had desirable sensorial characteristics. Analysis of the extrudates confirmed an increased content of Zn, lysine, tryptophan in relation to raw materials.