Both soils and climate in Mozambique suit cassava cultivation and nine million tons fresh weight is produced annually, with a consumption of 85 kg per person per year. The roots are a staple carbohydrate and cooked leaves are served as a vegetable. Cassava is essential to food security, as it is a subsistence crop. Roots and leaves contain vitamin C and some minerals but are deficient in proteins and amino-acids. Although cassava is cultivated by about 63% of the population, cyanogenic glycosides and other anti-nutritional factors, threaten food safety. There are more than 100 varieties, but the more drought and insect resistant bitter types predominate. Traditional products made from cassava that rely on sun-drying, cooking or fermentation to reduce toxicity include "rale", "xinguinha", "karakata" "mahewu" and "oteka". Cassava flour has replaced up to 20% of wheat flour in bread, for economic reasons. An overview of the distribution, consumption patterns and nutritional value of cassava in Mozambique could contribute to knowledge, as much of the existing data has not been published. Food safety and nutritional value could be improved by commercializing the production of traditional products or fortifying the affordable staple carbohydrate. This could improve the health of vulnerable rural populations.

No abstract

Cassava root is the main staple for 70% of the population in Mozambique, particularly in inaccessible rural areas, but is known to be low in iron. Anaemia is a public health problem in mothers and preschool children in Mozambique and up to 40% of these cases are probably due to dietary iron deficiency. The World Health Organization (WHO) and Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) recognize the fortification of foodstuff as an effective method to remedy dietary deficiencies of micronutrients, including iron. Cassava mahewu, a non-alcoholic fermented beverage is prepared at subsistence level from cassava roots using indigenous procedures. The aim of the study was to standardize mahewu fermentation and investigate if the type of cassava fermented, or the iron compound used for fortification affected the final product. Roots of sweet and bitter varieties of cassava from four districts (Rapale, Meconta, Alto Molocue and Zavala) in Mozambique, were peeled, dried and pounded to prepare flour. Cassava flour was cooked and fermented under controlled conditions (45°C for 24 h). The fermentation period and temperature were set, based on the findings of a pilot study which showed that an end-point pH of about 4.5 was regularly reached after 24 h at 45°C. Cassava mahewu was fortified with ferrous sulfate (FeSO4.7H2O) or ferrous fumarate (C4H2FeO4) at the beginning (time zero) and at the end of fermentation (24 h). The amount of iron added to the mahewu was based on the average of the approved range of iron used for the fortification of maize meal. The mean pH at the endpoint was 4.5, with 0.29% titratable acidity. The pH and acidity were different to those reported in previous studies on maize mahewu, whereas the solid extract of 9.65% was found to be similar. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and yeast growth were not significantly different in mahewu fortified with either of the iron compounds. There was no significant difference between cassava mahewu made from bitter or sweet varieties. A standard method for preparation and iron fortification of cassava mahewu was developed. It is recommended that fortification occurs at the end of fermentation when done at household level.

Food insecurity (FI) is one of the major causes of malnutrition and is associated with a range of negative health outcomes in low and middle-income countries. The burden of FI in southern Africa is unknown, although FI continues to be a major public health problem across sub-Saharan Africa as a whole. Therefore, this review sought to identify empirical studies that related FI to health outcomes among adults in southern Africa. Altogether, 14 publications using diverse measures of FI were reviewed. The majority of the studies measured FI using modified versions of the United States Department of Agriculture Household Food Security Survey Module. A wide range in prevalence and severity of FI was reported (18–91%), depending on the measurement tool and population under investigation. Furthermore, FI was mostly associated with hypertension, diabetes, anxiety, depression and increased risk of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) acquisition. Based on the findings, future research is needed, especially in countries with as yet no empirical studies on the subject, to identify and standardize measures of FI suitable for the southern African context and to inform public health policies and appropriate interventions aiming to alleviate FI and potentially improve health outcomes in the region.

No abstract

It has been suggested that iron fortification could reduce dietary anaemia in women of childbearing age and preschool children in Mozambique, where cassava root, the staple carbohydrate, is deficient in iron. Mahewu is a traditional non-alcoholic, beverage made from fermented cassava roots (Manihot esculenta, Crantz). This study used Luten's in vitro dialysis method to compare the bioaccessibility of ferrous sulfate and ferrous fumarate added to mahewu made from sweet and bitter cassava varieties, at two different stages of fermentation. Iron concentration was measured using an Inductively Coupled Plasma-Optical Emission Spectrometer. Neither the stage of fortification nor the iron salt used affected the concentration of iron. A significant (p<0.05) difference was observed in the proportion of bioaccessible iron in mahewu fortified with either ferrous sulfate or ferrous fumarate. A higher proportion of iron was found to be bioaccessible in mahewu fortified with ferrous sulfate. However, the concentration of both total and proportional bioaccessible iron was significantly higher (p<0.05) when ferrous sulfate was used, compared to ferrous fumarate. It is recommended that ferrous sulphate be used for both household and commercial fortification of mahewu in Mozambique.

No abstract

In this article we draw on an interdisciplinary study on drinking water quality in Maputo, the capital of Mozambique, to examine the nature, scale, and politics of waterborne diseases. We show how water contamination and related diseases are discursively framed as household risks, thereby concealing the politics of uneven exposure to contaminated water and placing the burden of being healthy on individuals. In contrast, we propose that uneven geographies of waterborne diseases are best understood as the product of Maputo's urban metabolism, in which attempts at being sanitary and healthy are caught up in relations of power, class, and variegated citizenship. Waterborne diseases are the result of complex and fragmented circulations and intersections of (waste)waters, generated by uneven urban development, heterogeneous infrastructure configurations, and everyday practices to cope with basic service deficits, in conjunction with increasing climatic variability. The latrine-from which ultimately contamination and diseases spread-is an outcome of these processes, rather than the site to be blamed. This article also advances an interdisciplinary framework for analyzing urban metabolism and deepening its explanatory potential. It serves as a demonstration of how interdisciplinary approaches might be taken forward to generate new readings of morethan-human metabolic processes at distinct temporal and spatial scales.