Publication:
Investigation on Sustainable Source of Nutrients from Fresh and Pasteurised Sweet Potato Haulm Juice Powder

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Abstract

The push for modernisation in agriculture involves food-based plants as a buffer for more profitable returns. In Malaysia, the second widest cash-crop plantation is for sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L.), occupying 3, 623 hectares of agricultural land. Furthermore, its haulms are discarded as waste. There are limited studies on the macronutrients of sweet potato stalk, stem and leaves, collectively known as the haulm. This study investigates the proximate nutritional composition of fresh and pasteurised sweet potato haulm juice powders (SPHJPs). The pasteurisation process has significantly reduced carbohydrate content (39.33 g/100g dry weight (dw)) and increased mineral content (13.24 g/100g dw) compared with fresh SPHJP (p<0.05). The fresh and pasteurised SPHJP had a minimum percentage of protein (35.23 g/100g dw), fibre (7.72 g/100g dw) and fat (2.42 g/100g dw), revealing that the haulm from sweet potato has the potential to be transformed into a sustainable source of nutrients and as an innovative plant-based protein. The current information is crucial in imparting dietary recommendations on utilising sweet potato haulm as part of human or animal diet. Future studies that emphasise on the micronutrient and antinutrient contents of the haulm are recommended

Description

Volume 17 Number 5, May 2022: 98-105

Keywords

Sweet potato, haulm, fresh juice, pasteurised juice, sustainable nutrients. Abbreviations: Sweet potato haulm juice (SPHJ), sweet potato haulm juice powder (SPHJP).

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