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This study documented existing knowledge on traditional fruits, vegetables and pulses in Kenya and Ethiopia. The aim was to identify neglected and underutilized species with high potential for food security, for their economic value and contribution to sustainable agriculture, based on a literature review and confirmation of existing data by local experts. In order of priority, the top 5 fruit species in Kenya are Tamarindus indica L. , Adansonia digitata L. , Sclerocarya birrea (A.Rich.) Hochst , Balanites aegyptiaca (L.) Delile, and Ziziphus mauritiana Lam., for vegetables are Amaranthus spp., Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp ., Solanum spp., and Cleome gynandra L . Top fruits in Ethiopia are Balanites aegyptiaca (L.) Delile , Ziziphus spina-christi (L.) Desf ., Cordeauxia edulis Hemsl ., Cordia africana Lam ., and Mimusops kummel A. DC., for vegetables are Brassica carinata A. Braun, Cucurbita pepo L ., and Amaranthus spp. In both countries, priority pulse species (no ranking) are Phaseolus lunatus L ., Sphenostylis stenocarpa (A.Rich.) Harms , Mucuna pruriens (L.) DC ., Lablab purpureus (L.) Sweet, and Cajanus cajan (L.) Millsp . Generally, these priority species are good sources of key nutrients known for their inadequate dietary intakes in sub-Saharan Africa, represent a safety net for household income, and contribute positively to ecosystem resilience in existing agricultural systems. Complete, accurate and reliable nutrient composition data are needed to raise consumer awareness about their nutritional and health benefits. Since women play a central role in traditional food systems, their empowerment, and hence resilience, increase the positive impact they can have on the households' dietary diversity. In particular, introducing small-scale processing techniques and marketing strategies could enhance their supply and consumption., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Ngigi, Termote, Pallet and Amiot.)

Mangoes of the Manila and Ataulfo varieties are characterized by having a pleasant flavor and an attractive color of both the peel and pulp. However, due to their post-harvest physiology, they are highly perishable and very susceptible to physical damage, which greatly limits marketing these fruits. Therefore, it is necessary to evaluate technologies that preserve their organoleptic and nutritional properties. There is also an increasing demand of products that are as natural as possible where only physical processes are used in their preparation to reduce the use of chemical compounds. A technology that satisfies these demands is the flash vacuum-expansion (FVE) process. In Ataulfo mango, the FVE process increased soluble solids by approximately 9% and total phenolic content from 100.9 to 122.8 mg GAE/100 g of puree, which led to an increase in antioxidant capacity of the puree, as well as slightly improving color stability. However, further optimization of this method of processing mango is required., Competing Interests: Conflict of interestThe authors declare that they have no conflict of interest with any public or private institution., (© Association of Food Scientists & Technologists (India) 2022.)

The diversity of both bacterial and fungal communities associated with mango surface was explored using a metabarcoding approach targeting fungal ITS2 and bacterial 16S (V3-V4) genomic regions. Fruits were collected in Reunion Island from two different orchards according to a sampling method which allowed the effect of several pre-harvest factors such as geographical location (terroir), cultivars, fruit parts, tree position in the plot, fruit position on the tree (orientation and height), as well as the harvest date to be investigated. A total of 4,266,546 fungal and 2,049,919 bacterial reads were recovered then respectively assigned to 3,153 fungal and 24,087 to bacterial amplicon sequence variants (ASVs). Alpha and beta diversity, as well as differential abundance analyses revealed variations in both bacterial and fungal communities detected on mango surfaces depended upon the studied factor. Results indicated that Burkholderiaceae (58.8%), Enterobacteriaceae (5.2%), Pseudomonadaceae (4.8%), Sphingomonadaceae (4.1%), Beijerinckiaceae (3.5%), and Microbacteriaceae (3.1%) were the dominant bacterial families across all samples. The majority of fungal sequences were assigned to Mycosphaerellaceae (34.5%), Cladosporiaceae (23.21%), Aureobasidiaceae (13.09%), Pleosporaceae (6.92%), Trichosphaeriaceae (5.17%), and Microstromatales_fam_Incertae_sedis (4.67%). For each studied location, mango fruit from each cultivar shared a core microbiome, and fruits of the same cultivar harvested in two different locations shared about 80% fungal and bacterial family taxa. The various factors tested in this study affected bacterial and fungal taxa differently, suggesting that some taxa could act as geographical (terroir) markers and in some cases as cultivar fingerprints. The ranking of the factors investigated in the present study showed that in decreasing order of importance: the plot (terroir), cultivar, fruit parts, harvest date and the position of the fruits are respectively the most impacting factors of the microbial flora, when compared to the orientation and the fruit position (height) on the tree. Overall, these findings provided insights on both bacterial and fungal diversity associated with the mango surface, their patterns from intra-fruit scale to local scale and the potential parameters shaping the mango microbiota., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2021 Taîbi, Rivallan, Broussolle, Pallet, Lortal, Meile and Constancias.)

This work describes the formulation of a functional yogurt-like product based on fermented maize with added phytosterols and its oxidative stability during cold storage. The technological challenge was to stabilize 3.5% esterified phytosterols (between 2 and 3 g of free sterols) in a low-fat emulsion and to preserve the obtained product throughout processing and storage. The natural bioactive compounds: lutein, zeaxanthin, β-cryptoxanthin, β-carotene and γ-tocopherol were detected in the yogurt, and remained stable during 12 days of refrigeration. Higher content of C18:1 n-9 and C18:3 n-3 (six and ninefold, respectively) were obtained in samples with phytosterols. This was desirable from a nutritional point of view, but at the same time it induced lipid oxidation that was 1.4-fold higher in the product with phytosterols than in the controls. The use of a multivariate approach served to find descriptors which were related to treatments, and to explain their behavior over time.

The cashew apple is an unvalued by-product from the cashew nut industry, of which millions of tonnes are simply discarded globally. Interestingly, however, cashew apple nutrients may have beneficial effects for health even if these are still poorly described. The present study was designed to evaluate the effect of a hydro-alcoholic extract of cashew apple (cashew apple extract; CAE; Cashewin(™)) on obesity and diabetes, in two experimental designs using the diet-induced obesity (DIO) mouse model. First, in the preventive design, mice were treated orally with the CAE at the dose of 200 mg/kg body weight from the first day under a high-fat diet (HFD) and during 8 weeks thereafter. Second, in the curative design, the animals were first maintained under the HFD for 4 weeks and then treated with the CAE for a further 4 weeks under the same regimen. For both experimental designs, body weight, peri-epididymal adipose tissue, liver weight, food consumption, glycaemia, insulinaemia and insulin resistance were assessed. In both designs, the CAE significantly reduced body-weight gain and fat storage in both the peri-epididymal adipose tissue and the liver for mice under the HFD. This was achieved without modifying their energy consumption. Furthermore, glycaemia, insulinaemia and insulin resistance (homeostasis model assessment-insulin resistance) of the DIO mice were significantly lowered compared with the control group. Thus, a well-designed hydro-alcoholic extract of cashew apple could provide an attractive nutritional food ingredient to help support the management of body weight and associated metabolic parameters such as blood glucose and insulin levels.

The combined influence of maturation, ripening, and climate on the profile of bioactive compounds was studied in banana (Musa acuminata, AAA, Cavendish, cv. Grande Naine). Their bioactive compounds were determined by the Folin-Ciocalteu assay and high-performance thin layer chromatographic (HPTLC) method. The polyphenol content of bananas harvested after 400 degree days remained unchanged during ripening, while bananas harvested after 600 and 900 degree days exhibited a significant polyphenol increase. Although dopamine was the polyphenol with the highest concentration in banana peels during the green developmental stage and ripening, its kinetics differed from the total polyphenol profile. Our results showed that this matrix of choice (maturation, ripening, and climate) may allow selection of the banana (M. acuminata, AAA, Cavendish, cv. Grande Naine) status that will produce optimal concentrations of identified compounds with human health relevance.