Nutritional Food Composition Analysis of Some Traditional Foods in Jigawa, Nigeria

Traditional foods constitute an important part of the culture, history, identity, heritage and local economy of a region or country and are key elements for the dietary patterns of each country. This research was conducted in Jigawa State Nigeria. A total of 1, 500 questionnaires were administered and 1, 250 were returned. Based on the analysed questionnaires, three representative samples of traditional foods which includes most prepared Tuwon Masara (white maize), moderately prepared Danwake and least Moimoi from the selected population were collected and transported to the laboratory for chemical food composition analysis. Standard procedures of AOAC were used to determine the carbohydrate content, crude protein, crude fat, ash, moisture content, total fiber, energy (kcal), glycosides, oxalate, phytate, tannin and total phenol. Based on the result obtained, these locally prepared foods are found to have high percentage of carbohydrate content, crude protein, fiber, moisture and energy than the recommended limit of Dietary Recommended Allowance (DRA). This may be attributed to lack of standard procedure on the actual amount of nutrients for the local populace.