Is egg powder suitable as a food supplement?

Malnutrition is a key problem not solely in African international locations. As a world research revealed in Frontiers in Diet led by Veronika Somoza now reveals, egg powder is a meals with nice potential to enhance the dietary scenario of youngsters in disadvantaged areas. In comparison with pasteurized entire eggs, the powder comprises decrease quantities of important fatty acids, however nonetheless gives many nutritional vitamins, indispensable amino acids and vital hint components. As well as, it has a protracted shelf life with out extra preservatives, is straightforward to move over lengthy distances and is easy to organize.

In response to the German Federal Ministry of Meals and Agriculture, greater than 250 million individuals in Africa alone are undernourished. Infants and kids are notably exhausting hit. “Research present that including one egg a day to complementary meals may help scale back the incidence of underweight in older infants by 74%, in addition to counteract the so-called ‘stunting’ impact’,” says Veronika Somoza, director of the Leibniz Institute for Meals Programs Biology on the Technical College of Munich (LSB).

Egg powder as a low-cost different

In areas the place malnutrition is a part of on a regular basis life, nonetheless, eggs are hardly out there. Cheap egg powder might subsequently be another. On account of its minimal water content material, it has a considerably longer shelf life in addition to a comparatively excessive nutrient density. As well as, it’s simpler to retailer and transport than eggs, and it may be simply added to meals. This makes it fascinating as a possible dietary complement.

Regardless of its widespread industrial use, little has been identified about its dietary high quality. To fill this data hole, the staff led by Veronika Somoza performed an intensive comparative research. Utilizing state-of-the-art meals chemistry evaluation strategies, the scientists decided the nutrient profiles of three batches every of industrially produced, pasteurized entire egg and egg powder processed from it and in contrast them on a dry matter foundation.

Egg powder not contaminated by heavy metals

“As our analyses confirmed, the drying course of didn’t result in an accumulation of the heavy metals cadmium, lead, arsenic and mercury,” reviews Philip Pirkwieser, Ph.D. chemist at LSB and lead creator of the research. As well as, the analysis staff noticed little or no loss in whole fats content material, important amino acid content material, vital hint components or carotenoids. Likewise, vitamin E (alpha- and gamma-tocopherol) and vitamin B12 concentrations remained almost fixed. Nonetheless, vitamin A (retinol) ranges decreased by 14%. The quantity of significant omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids even decreased considerably by a median of 39% and 61%, respectively.

“Regardless of the small lack of retinol, egg powder is a worthwhile supply of vitamin A. Sub-Saharan African areas specifically may benefit from this. It is because vitamin A deficiency is widespread there and results in a excessive prevalence of imaginative and prescient issues,” explains Veronika Somoza.

A day by day consumption of egg powder equal to 1 medium-sized egg is ample to cowl 24% of a kid’s day by day requirement for vitamin A, 100% for vitamin E, 61 % for selenium and 22% for zinc, relying on age. That is very optimistic. If it have been doable to extend the content material of important fatty acids and vitamin A, the good potential of egg powder as a meals complement may very well be absolutely exploited, the LSB director continues. One strategy to obtain this may very well be by rooster feed enriched with these fatty acids and nutritional vitamins.

Supplied by
Leibniz-Institut für Lebensmittel-Systembiologie