Abstract:
Sri Lankan economy is primarily based on
agriculture. Pumpkin production of Sri Lanka
was in the range of 15000-25000 kg in 2017.
The annual loss of pumpkin during post-harvest
operation represents as 30–40% [1]. Pumpkin
(Cucurbita maxima) which belongs to
Cucurbitaceae family are grown widely in
tropical and sub-tropical regions where they
are rich in β carotene, vitamins, minerals, and fibers. Pumpkin seeds have a great
nutritional profile that benefits a variety of
human health factors. Protein, vitamins, fat
, and minerals are high in seeds which help to
reduce the risk of chronic diseases and heart
diseases. Because of their high moisture
content, fresh pumpkins are very susceptible
to attack by pathogenic microorganisms
during the period between harvest and
consumption [2]. Therefore, modified value-added products can be a solution to post-harvest
loss of pumpkin.
Malnutrition has become one of the major health
problems in Sri Lanka which lowers the
resistance to disease of children. For instance,
Sri Lankan Demographic and Health Survey
highlighted that 18% of Sri Lankan children are
stunt, 15% are wasted, 22% are underweight [3].
Introducing weaning flakes as a supplementary
food prepared from regular weaning mixtures
incorporated with pumpkin flour and pumpkin
seeds flour can be consumed with milk in order
to protect the nutritional values as well as to feed
infants who are consuming liquid or semisolid
food. Weaning is a period of transition for
infants which diet changes in terms of
consistency and source. From a milk-based diet,
the child is gradually introduced to semi-solid
foods (4). According to commercially available cereal
flake products, their nutrition composition has
been shown with the product as 7.90 g/100 g of
protein, 13.94 g/100 g of dietary fiber, 10.9
g/100 g of crude-fat, 76.40 g/100 g of
carbohydrates and 216.11 μg /100 g vitamin A.
The main objective of this study was to
determine the effect of Pumpkin flour
(Cucurbita maxima) and pumpkin seeds flour
on physicochemical, nutritional, and sensory
properties of weaning flakes. Other specific
objectives are to enhance the nutrient uptake by
commercializing this product with high
nutritional profile to children in Sri Lanka and
to reduce post-harvest loss of pumpkin in Sri
Lanka.
