Proximate and fatty acid compositions of smoked underutilised South African mussel Choromytilus meridionalis

Seafood is valued for its nutritional content; however, overfishing necessitates the focus on underutilised species to promote sustainable utilisation. We investigated the proximate and fatty acid compositions of hot-smoked Choromytilus meridionalis (black mussels) using AOAC International methods and gas chromatography. Lipid nutritional quality indices were calculated. Moisture content in mussels significantly (p < or < 0.05) decreased by 19% after hot smoking, whilst ash, protein, lipid, and carbohydrate contents increased by 98%, 42%, 46% and 49%, respectively. Hot smoking significantly increased the polyunsaturated (37.70 ± 1.06%) and omega-3 fatty acid (33.36 ± 1.23%) contents. Conversely, omega-6 and saturated fatty acids of hot-smoked mussels were significantly (p < or < 0.05) lower than those for raw mussels. The atherogenicity index and thrombogenicity index showed a significant reduction (p < or < 0.05), whilst the hypocholesterolaemic to hypercholesterolaemic ratio and the sum of EPA+DHA showed significant increases. This study shows that C. meridionalis is a valuable food with a high protein content and a well-balanced fatty acid composition, rich in omega-3 fatty acids. This study was the first to investigate the macronutrients of C. meridionalis.