The present research, entitled « Nutritional and dietetic potentiality of ants and winged ants on sale at the market of Lubumbashi/DRC »; aims at making available scientific information related to insects sold in the city of Lubumbashi: Case of ants and winged ants (Makalo and Inswa respectively in a local language).
The analysis of these sample reveals:
- 4,95 % fats (Ants) and 39,8 % (winged-ants);
- 40,2 % and 35,6 % proteins respectively for ants and winged-ants.
Winged ants are richer in mineral elements than ants in decreasing order Mn, Ca, Na, Mg, Fe.
Edible insects thus show some potentialities:
- They contain highly digestible proteins;
- They are tender and without collagens;
- Toxicity risks and fermentation could be discarded.
- They may contain a good proportion of polysaturated fat acids.
From what precedes, edible insects are particularly useful in dietetic therapy for food dietary of pathologies which need elimination or reduction of the consumption of meat, proteins and/or that of saturated fat.
The purpose of this work lies within the scope of the valorization of the traditional foods of the Democratic Republic of Congo in general and the province of Haut Katanga in particular and aims at the evaluation of the food value of the edible caterpillars of Lubumbashi city and its surroundings and the popularization relative data for their rational and equitable consumption.
The determination of moisture, proteins, lipids, sugars, ashes, minerals and the energy value was carried out according to usual techniques. Four species of caterpillars have been analysed. These were black binkubala ( Imbrasia oyemensis), yellow binkubala ( Imbrasia truncata), masamba ( Cirina forda), and tunkubio ( Notodontidae sp1) of which the major nutrients contents varied: moisture 4,90 %, proteins 50,09 to 53,81 %, lipids 19,80 to 21,5 %, glucids 7-8 %, ashes 4,5-5,5% and energy 410,16-457,14 Kcal.
Thus from their food value, edible caterpillars of Lubumbashi are more rich in proteins and lipids than soyas, groundnuts and meat. And they can easily combat proteinic and calorific malnutrition.
With through this research, we proceeded by the compilation of the nutritional data relating to the edible caterpillars in particular the composition out of proteins (and acids amino), in lipids (and acid fats), of ashes (and minerals) concerning four species of the caterpillars of which Imbrasia oyemensis, Imbrasia truncata, Cirina forda and Notodontidae sp1.At the end of this one we passed to the description of the nutritional and therapeutic potential as of those for a strict and rational consumption as well as any other rich food in protein and lipid and particularly those of animal origin which are the fish, the egg and the meat or their derivatives.
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