Nutrient content and lipid characteristics of desert locust ( Schistoscerca gregaria ) swarm in Kenya
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ORIGINAL RESEARCH ARTICLE
Nutrient content and lipid characteristics of desert locust (Scistoscerca gregaria) swarm in Kenya John N. Kinyuru 1 Received: 20 May 2020 / Accepted: 6 October 2020 # African Association of Insect Scientists 2020
Abstract The desert locust (Schitocerca gregaria) swarms in numbers that decimate farmland, threatening an already vulnerable horn and Eastern region of Africa. The aim of this research was to assess the nutrient content and oil characteristics of the desert locust and for possible utilization as a food resource at industrial scale. The desert locusts were harvested from swarms in various regions of Kenya. Nutrient analysis was performed using standard protocols and physico-chemical characteristics of the extracted oil were evaluated. A 100 g sample contained 450Kcal energy, 46 g protein, 32 g fat and 4 g fibre. Calcium was the most abundant macro mineral (208.36 mg/100 g), iron was the most abundant trace mineral (4.83 mg/100 g) while α-tocopherol content of 267.47 µg/g was recorded. Oleic acid was the main fatty acid (30.78%) with total unsaturated fatty acids being 66.47% of the total fatty acids. The n-6:n-3 ratio of 2,4 was reported which indicated a significant nutritional quality of the locust oil. The locust oil had 0.94 specific gravity indicating potential industrial applications. Iodine value (75 g iodine/100 g oil), peroxide value (0.18 mEq/Kg) and saponification value (171 mg KOH/Kg) indicated an oil with relative stability and potential for industrial utilization in the food industry. As a result, locust control efforts could therefore include harvesting and consumption as part of the integrated management. Keywords Edible insects . Entomophagy . Nutrients . Lipids . Lipid characteristics
Introduction Hundreds of billions of desert locusts (Schistocerca gregaria Forskal) swarms through parts of Eastern and Horn of Africa threatening crops and livelihoods (DLCO-EA 2020). The desert locust is a swarming short-horned grasshopper in the family Acrididae. It is one of the most devastating migratory pests in the world, highly mobile and feeds on large quantities of any kind of green vegetation, including crops and pasture (Hunter 2019). A typical desert locust swarm can be made up of 150 million locusts per square kilometre and its flight is enhanced by the direction of the wind enabling the locusts to travel up to 150 km in one day. Prolonged bouts of exceptionally wet weather in the year 2019/2020 in the Arabian Desert Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (https://doi.org/10.1007/s42690-020-00308-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. * John N. Kinyuru [email protected] 1
Department of Food Science and Technology, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, Nairobi, Kenya
led to the current swarm due to conducive breeding conditions which swarm across the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden into Ethiopia and Somalia. The changing weather patterns are therefore likely to lead to more lo
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