Nutritive value of commonly consumed bread in Yemen

Abstract

Bread has always been considered as the staple food of choice in Yemen. Because of the paucity of information on the nutritive composition of commonly consumed breads, this study was conducted. Samples were collected randomly from 10 bakeries located in different districts of Aden province, using white wheat and brown wheat flours produced in two different national milling plants located in Aden & AL-Hoddidah. Fresh crumb moisture, protein, fat, Ash, carbohydrates and energy were analyzed. Minerals such as Na, K, Mg, Mn, Fe, Zn and Cu also determined using flame AAS after wet digestion by conc. nitric acid. The results were analyzed using the statistical program (Genestat-5). The results showed that bakery industry in Yemen does have problems with bread nutritive values especially in protein content and other minerals mainly K, Zn and Cu that are important for health to Yemeni consumer.