Consumer Characteristics and Consumption Analytics of Frequently Consumed Food Categories in Mining Areas

Ekpor Anyimah-Ackah, Isaac W. Ofosu, Herman Erick Lutterodt and Godfred Darko
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Ekpor Anyimah-Ackah: Department of Food Science and Technology, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, (KNUST), Kumasi, Ghana, West Africa
Isaac W. Ofosu: Department of Food Science and Technology, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, (KNUST), Kumasi, Ghana, West Africa
Herman Erick Lutterodt: Department of Food Science and Technology, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, (KNUST), Kumasi, Ghana, West Africa
Godfred Darko: Department of Chemistry, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Kumasi, Ghana, West Africa

Academic Journal of Life Sciences, 2020, vol. 6, issue 5, 39-52

Abstract: The WHO/FAO have requested data on food consumption to better understand the increasing toxicological results of foodstuffs. The aim of this study was to determine the food consumption characteristics of the consumers living in small-scale mining areas. Commonly consumed food crops of each category: fruit, cereals, vegetables, legumes and root tubers were selected. In all, 308 consumers were sampled using a one-week dietary recall tool and a stratified sampling method of the consumers. The @Risk Microsoft add-in was used to analyze the data. The results show that the adolescents (10-17 years) consumed cowpea (233.90 g/day) and cassava (666.96g/day) at a relatively higher level compared to children (3-9 years) and adults (18-64 years). Likewise, adults consumed yam (136.65g/day), maize (1739.37g/day), rice (1272.40g/day), pineapple (184.97g/day) and watermelon (656.55g/day) at a relatively higher level compared to children and adolescents. On the contrary, whereas children generally consumed lower quantities of food, they presented higher exposure frequency to cowpea (364 days/year), root tubers (36-364 days/year) and grains (286-364 days/year) compared to adults and adolescents. Both adolescent and adult population subgroups presented higher exposure frequency to vegetables (364 days/year) relative to children (104-364 days/year). The findings further show that, in increasing order rice and maize are the most consumed crops. The adult population subgroup, in the study area may be vulnerable to contaminants in maize grains than other dishes categories due to the high mass consumed and high exposure duration. Children may be vulnerable to contaminants in maize grains because of the high exposure frequency.

Keywords: Food categories; Food consumption; Mining areas; Variables of exposure. (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:arp:ajlsar:2020:p:39-52

DOI: 10.32861/ajls.65.39.52

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