Duckweed Fortified Cookies: Nutritional Profile, Functional Properties and Consumer Assessment

ABSTRACT This study provides a sustainable approach for enhancing the nutritional and phytochemical properties of cookies with duckweed fortification. Duckweed flour (7%, 10 % and 13 %) was incorporated into wheat flour to make cookies and compared with controls (100% wheat flour) for proximate composition, techno-functional properties, amino acid and phenolic profile (HPLC), antioxidant capacity (TEAC Assay), polyphenol estimation (Folin-Ciocalteau method), fatty acid profile (GCMS) and sensory attributes. Duckweed fortification significantly (p<0.05) improved the nutritional composition, increasing protein content by approximately 51% (6.3% to 9.5%), alongside significant increase in ash and essential aminoacids. HPLC analysis demonstrated enhanced accumulation of individual polyphenols, resulting in a 3.8-fold increase in total phenolic content (0.014- 0.053 mg g-1). Linolenic acid content increased by 108% (1.2%-2.5%), while water and oil absorption increased by 59.6% (10.4%-16.6%) and 35.0% (10.0%-13.5%), respectively. Although duckweed fortification reduced consumer acceptability due to changes in colour and flavour, it substantially enhanced the nutritional, functional and phytochemical properties of the cookies. These findings demonstrate the potential of duckweed as a sustainable, nutrient rich ingredient for the development of functional bakery products.