FORMULATION AND EVALUATION OF IRON FORTIFIED MILLET BASED NUTRACEUTICAL EDIBLE CUPS

Abstract

Background: Iron deficiency anemia remains one of the most prevalent micronutrient deficiencies worldwide, particularly among women and children. Functional foods enriched with iron offer an effective dietary strategy to improve iron intake. Millets are nutrient-dense cereals rich in dietary fiber, minerals, antioxidants, and bioactive compounds, making them suitable ingredients for nutraceutical product development.
Objective: The present study aimed to formulate and evaluate iron-fortified millet-based nutraceutical cups using finger millet flour and foxtail millet flour enriched with ferrous sulphate and to assess their physicochemical, nutritional, microbiological, and sensory characteristics.
Methods: Four formulations (F1 and F4) containing finger millet flour, foxtail millet flour, jaggery, milk powder, almond powder, ghee, ferrous sulphate, and citric acid were prepared. The products were evaluated for organoleptic properties, weight variation, moisture content, ash value, pH, iron content, texture, nutritional composition, and microbial quality using standard analytical methods.
Results: The optimized formulation (F4) demonstrated superior sensory characteristics, including improved color, aroma, taste, texture, and overall acceptability. Moisture content was lower in F4 (5.6%) than F1 (6.2%), indicating better storage stability. Iron content increased from 12.8 mg/100 g in F1 to 17.6 mg/100 g in F4 following fortification. The ash value, protein content, texture, and caloric value were also improved. Microbiological analysis confirmed that both formulations complied with acceptable food safety standards.
Conclusion: Iron-fortified millet-based nutraceutical cups developed in this study exhibited enhanced nutritional quality, high iron content, good sensory acceptability, and microbiological safety. The optimized formulation has potential as an affordable functional food for improving dietary iron intake and reducing the risk of iron deficiency anemia.