Retention of provitamin A carotenoid in biofortified maize after processing, cooking and storage in Zambia

Biofortified maize hybrids with higher content of provitamin A (proA) were developed to target vitamin A deficient populations in Africa. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the degradation of proA after processing, cooking and storage among the first wave of biofortified varieties released in Zambia. The biofortified maize hybrids according to the harvesting period contained 4–11 (green maize) and 5–8 (dry maize) ìg/g of proA on a dry weight basis, respectively. The effect on the degradation of proA varied among the different genotypes. One maize genotype showed 60% retention of proA after the maize was roasted for about 20 minutes, while no degradation was observed among the other genotypes. The retention of proA ranged from 61–85% after boiling for 35 minutes at 95oC. During storage of maize grains, most of the degradation occurred in the first 15 days of storage (52–56% retention) which then stabilized retaining 30–33% of proA after 6 months of storage. In conclusion, most of the proA degradation in biofortified maize hybrids occurred during storage compared with cooking processes and the magnitude of the effect varied among the different genotypes.