African nightshades (<i>Solanum nigrum</i> complex): The potential contribution to human nutrition and livelihoods in sub‐Saharan Africa

Sangija, Frank; Martin, Haikael; Matemu, Athanasia O.

doi:10.1111/1541-4337.12756

Cited by 26 publications

(40 citation statements)

References 212 publications

(447 reference statements)

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“…Against this background, there is a growing body of literature describing the contribution of IFV, such as guavas (Omayio et al 2019), African nightshade (Sangija, Martin, and Matemu 2021), and cowpea leaves (Owade et al 2020a), towards food security. These…”

Section: List Of Figuresmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…African indigenous fruits and vegetables (IFV) can provide many benefits to consumers and producers. For one thing, they are rich in minerals and vitamins essential for human health, such as iron, zinc, and vitamin A (e.g., Omotayo & Aremu, 2020;Owade et al, 2020;Sangija et al, 2021). On the other hand, as they often grow naturally (e.g., Omayio et al, 2020) and are more stress-tolerant than exotic plants to extreme weather conditions such as extended drought periods, they can enhance farmers' resilience and be of excellent farm value (Baldermann et al 2016).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…and preservation techniques are costly to implement and difficult to operate(Sangija, Martin, and Matemu 2021), simple processing, such as drying and fermentation, are costeffective solutions farmers can easily apply, also in rural areas(Sangija, Martin, and Matemu 2021;Sivakumar et al 2020). However, farmers can only expect additional processing income if the final product is demanded and purchased by customers, and the economic benefits of processing IFV can only be derived if market prices exceed processing expenses.Therefore, the objective of the present study is to show how the marketing opportunities of IFV can be improved.…”

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confidence: 99%

“…The included IFV are cowpea leaves and guavas in Kenya(Omayio et al. 2019; Owade et al 2020a), African nightshade(Sangija, Martin, and Matemu 2021) cashew apples in Tanzania, and jackfruits in Uganda(Balamaze et al. 2019).…”

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confidence: 99%

“…Little or no processing techniques are applied, causing surplus fruits and vegetables (FV) to spoil(Balamaze et al. 2019; Omayio et al 2019; Owade et al 2020b;Sangija, Martin, and Matemu 2021). Hence, farmers are bound to seasons, can expect only small marginal returns, and, due to their short shelf life, have only limited power on market prices(Dinssa et al 2016).Therefore, we aim to address three research questions: (i) Can farmers expect additional income from processing IFV, and what price should they ask of consumers?…”

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Demand for Processed Indigenous Fruit and Vegetable Products – Insights from East Africa

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Section: List Of Figuresmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

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Demand for Processed Indigenous Fruit and Vegetable Products – Insights from East Africa

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Reorienting research investments toward under‐researched crops for sustainable food systems

Munialo,

Siddique,

Barker

et al. 2024

Food and Energy Security

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The dominance of a few staple crops (maize, rice, and wheat) in most agricultural systems hampers the application of interventions to improve food security and nutrition. Research and development attention has focused on improving the production and utilization of these crops, leaving other crops under‐researched and underutilized. Subsequently, there have been high malnutrition rates due to poor diet diversity, yet there are “opportunity crops” that remain under researched. The opportunity crops can unlock solutions to food insecurity, malnutrition, a lack of biodiversity, and indeed poor climate adaptation. The study explored diversification in agricultural systems to analyze whether reorientation of research investment to include under‐researched crops can increase nutrient gain and enhance dietary diversity. Research outputs benchmarked as the number of publications from three leading African universities, Nairobi, Pretoria, and Ghana, were related to crop diversity and nutrition of crops in five clusters: cereals, vegetables, legumes, roots and tubers, and nuts. The findings show that maize was the predominantly researched crop across the three institutions. Low research outputs were observed for pearl millet, finger millet, and yam across the three institutions: amaranth and nightshade (Pretoria), sweet potatoes (Pretoria and Ghana), Marama bean (Nairobi), and soya bean (Nairobi and Ghana). There was nutrient gain across all five clusters, particularly from under‐researched indigenous crops such as finger millet, amaranth, nightshade, yam, sweet potatoes, Marama bean, and soybean. Nutrient gain was contributed more by cereals and root and tuber crops from Pretoria, vegetables and nuts (Ghana), as well as legumes (Nairobi). The findings demonstrate that incorporating research on the least researched crops with successful integration of other research and development initiatives (policy and dissemination) can increase nutrition and improve dietary diversity. The nutrient gain will positively affect food security and nutrition, contributing to the achievement of Africa Agenda 2063, the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals, and reducing food imports. The findings can inform research investment and decision across different institutions within the African continent. Research investment targeting crops such as finger millet, amaranthus, sweet potatoes, soya beans, and cashew nuts is needed considering the nutritional contribution, climate change adaptability, market potential, and biodiversity contribution. Further analysis should explore production, socio‐economic (marketability and income generation), and environmental gains (adaptive ability to climate change) for specific crops. The development of frameworks to guide the analysis of the nature and scope of factors affecting the contribution of these crops to food security and nutrition, as well as research on specific crops considering geographic distribution and institutional involvement, is also needed.

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Effect of lactic acid fermentation on the nutritional quality and consumer acceptability of African nightshade

Sangija

Martin

Matemu

2022

Food Science & Nutrition

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African nightshade (ANS) is among many underexploited and neglected indigenous vegetables. This study assessed the effect of lactic acid fermentation (LAF) on nutritional and sensory quality in Solanum villosum (Sv) and Solanum scabrum (Ss). Spontaneously fermented (SF) and controlled fermented (CF) conditions using Lactobacillus plantarum LP90 and Leuconostoc mesenteroides LM58 were employed for 15 days and 120 h. From the fermented pickles, relish products were prepared using cooking oil and a variety of spices. The relish products were subjected to a consumer acceptability test. Results show a significant drop in pH to <3.5, increasing titratable acidity (TTA) to around 0.6 after 120 h and 15 days of CF and SF, respectively. LAF resulted in a 2.6–5 and 1.6–4.8‐fold significant rise in β‐carotene in pickles and their relish products. All pickles and relish products exhibited a significant decrease (p < .05) in vitamin C by 88.33%–95.90%. LAF significantly reduced total phenolic (26%– 43%) and Chlorophyll (16.45%–39.25%). On the other hand, LAF showed improvement in minerals content (P, Ca, Fe, and Zn) and reduction of tannin (76.27%–92.88%) and oxalate (77.33%–90%) levels. LAF relish products were highly preferred by the consumers, with S. villosum controlled fermented relish (SvCFR) leading. All fermented relishes were stable at ambient (27°C) and refrigeration (4°C) temperatures after 6 months of storage. Generally, LAF is an effective method for ANS preservation, with improved nutritional quality and safety. LAF can therefore be recommended to small‐scale farmers, processors, and households for ANS preservation. Ultimately, this method enhances the nutrition and sensory quality, safety, and livelihood.

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African nightshades (Solanum nigrum complex): The potential contribution to human nutrition and livelihoods in sub‐Saharan Africa

Cited by 26 publications

References 212 publications

Demand for Processed Indigenous Fruit and Vegetable Products – Insights from East Africa

Demand for Processed Indigenous Fruit and Vegetable Products – Insights from East Africa

Reorienting research investments toward under‐researched crops for sustainable food systems

Effect of lactic acid fermentation on the nutritional quality and consumer acceptability of African nightshade

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