Effect of Consumption of Three Compound Flours Based on <i>Citrullus </i><i>lanatus</i> and <i>Moringa </i><i>oleifera</i> on Feed Efficie

The well-being of infants depends mainly on the quality and quantity of the food they consume. The objective of this study is to develop a high-quality nutritional weaning flour from local resources that can support infant growth. With this in mind, an assessment of the nutritional quality of complementary food formulations based on corn, <i>Citrullus lanatus</i> squash, and Moringa oleifera was carried out in Wistar rats. Nutritional trials were conducted on 30 growing Wistar rats over a period of 21 days, divided into groups of six per batch and fed different diets. An MbCMo diet containing (75% raw yellow corn, 15% defatted <i>Citrullus lanatus</i>, 10% <i>Moringa oleifera</i>), an MfCMo diet containing (80% fermented yellow corn, 15% defatted <i>Citrullus lanatus</i>, 5% <i>Moringa oleifera</i>) and an MgCMo diet containing (75% germinated yellow corn, 15% defatted <i>Citrullus lanatus</i>, 10% <i>Moringa oleifera</i>). Commercial flour was used as the control diet. The results showed that the food efficiency coefficient (FEC), ranging from 0.31 ± 0.14 to 0.41 ± 0.05, and the protein efficiency coefficient (PEC) ranging from 1.92 ± 0.57 to 2.21 ± 0.28 for the formulated diets and the control diet were similar (p>0.05). However, the PEC of the formulated diets was lower than that recommended by the Protein Advisory Group (PAG) 2.10. Regarding digestive balance, the TDC (81.94 ± 0.54 to 101.3 ± 0.02), NPU (74.29 ± 0.01% to 97.33 ± 0.05%), and BV (84.29 ± 0.01 to 97.50 ± 0.01) varied (p<0.01) and were higher in rats on the MbCMo and MgCMo diets than in those in the control group. Protein retention (PR) was (p <0.01) higher in animals on the control diet (1.09 ± 0.01) than in those on the experimental diets (0.52 to 0.89 ± 0.01). This study revealed that the nutritional quality of the three formulations and that of the industrial control were different. The test formulations all contained good nutritional quality. The best protein quality was recorded with the MbCMo formulation. In view of the results obtained, these formulations could constitute appropriate foods for infants and prevent malnutrition.