Cocoa production is a complex process where the conditions of the raw materials decisively impact the final quality of the product. Three universal clones (CCN51, ICS95, and TSH565) from the Department of Huila in Colombia were evaluated to characterize the ripening process of cocoa fruits. Maturity indicators were identified by following the evolution of basic fruit characteristics, including size, weight, seed count, depth and distance between grooves, width and length of the apex, diameter and length of the seed, moisture content, color parameters, fruit firmness, soluble solids content, pH, and acidity. The results indicated that each cocoa clone has a unique set of ripeness parameters: color for ICS95; firmness and weight of the seed for CCN51; and color, morphological characteristics of the apex and grooves, weight, moisture content, pH, and total soluble solids for TSH565. The establishment of reliable, practical, and objective ripeness indicators for each cocoa clone will allow more homogenous cocoa pods to be selected for fermentation, which will ultimately contribute to improved quality and homogeneity of cocoa and its derived products.

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This study evaluated the functional effects of two chemotypes of oregano essential oil (OEO): Lippia Origanoides (LO) and a comercial product Synergy Essence (SE). Broilers were randomly assigned to one of eight dietary treatments: 1) Basal diet (BD); 2) BD+ antibiotic growth promoters (AGP) (bacitracin 50g/ton); 3) BD+LO125 (125g/ton); 4) BD+LO250 (250g/ton); 5) BD+LO500 (500g/ton); 6) BD+SE125 (125g/ton); 7) BD+SE250 (250g/ton); 8) BD+SE500 (500g/ton). At the time of slaughter (42 d), five birds per treatment were slaughtered. A portion of the breast was minced and stored at -4 ºC for 3, 6, and 9 days. Lipid peroxidation was determined by measuring of malondialdehyde (MDA), data were analyzed as a completely randomized design with a factorial arrangement of treatments (8x4). Broilers fed SE250 had greater average daily gain (ADG) compared to broilers fed BD (P<0.05). Broilers fed LO500 had greater (P<0.05) organic matter digestibility than the ones fed BD. As days of storage increased, MDA concentration increased (P<0.05). Broilers fed SE500 had lower (P<0.05) MDA concentration than those fed BD and AGP. These data indicate that birds fed OEO grow faster than those fed a BD, similar to birds fed AGP. Some of these responses are possibly explained by increased digestibility and energy utilization. In addition, providing OEO from SE at 500g/ton resulted in lower lipid peroxidation in ground breast meat throughout the tested storage time.

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The best choice for feeding the newborn child is breast milk, and when it is not possible to breastfeed a baby, the breast milk is replaced by lacteal formula, which is why numerous studies focus their attention on the analysis of the diverse components of baby formula as well as functions in the breastfed baby. Fatty acids are components of great nutritional importance in the fetus and in the newborn child. Nowadays it is estimated that the fetus, during the last trimester of the gestational period and the newborn child, during the first six months of life, need a great contribution of araquidonic and docosahexaenoic acids, due to the fact that the speed of transformation of the predecessors to the hepatic level are not sufficient to cover the metabolic requirements of these fatty acids and it is the mother who contributes them through placental transport during gestation and her milk during lactation. The Organization of Food and Agriculture (FAO), the World Health Organization (WHO), the European Society of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Pediatric Nutrition (ESPGHAN) and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend that lacteal formula imitate the composition of the breast milk, especially in the fatty polyunsaturated acids (PUFA).<br><br>El alimento natural por excelencia para el recién nacido es la leche materna, cuando no es posible darla se sustituye por fórmulas lácteas, por lo que numerosos estudios enfocan su interés en el análisis de los diversos componentes de éstas, y sus funciones en el lactante. Los ácidos grasos son componentes de gran importancia nutricional tanto en el feto como en el recién nacido. Actualmente se estima que el feto, durante el último tercio del periodo gestacional y el recién nacido, durante los primeros seis meses de vida, requieren un gran aporte de ácidos araquidónico y docosahexaenoico, debido a que la velocidad de transformación de los precursores a nivel hepático no son suficientes para cubrir los requerimientos metabólicos de éstos ácidos grasos y es la madre quien los aporta a través del transporte placentario durante la gestación y a través de la leche durante la lactancia. La Organización para Alimentación y Agricultura (FAO), la Organización Mundial de la Salud (OMS) y la Sociedad Europea de Gastroenterología, Hepatología y Nutrición Pediátrica (ESPGHAN), así como la Academia Americana de Pediatría recomiendan que las fórmulas lácteas deben ser inocuas y similares a la composición de la leche humana y muy especialmente en los ácidos grasos poliinsaturados (PUFA)