Presence of trans-Fatty Acids Containing Ingredients in Pre-Packaged Foods and the Availability of Reported trans-Fat Levels in Kenya and Nigeria

Liping Huang, Adedayo E. Ojo, Judith Kimiywe, Alex Kibet, Boni M. Ale, Clementina E. Okoro, Jimmy Louie, Fraser Taylor, Mark D. Huffman, Dike B. Ojji, Jason H.Y. Wu, Matti Marklund

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

5 Scopus citations

Abstract

In most African countries, the prevalence of industrially produced trans-fatty acids (iTFA) in the food supply is unknown. We estimated the number and proportion of products containing specific (any hydrogenated edible oils) and non-specific (vegetable fat, margarine, and vegetable cream) ingredients potentially indicative of iTFAs among pre-packaged foods collected in Kenya and Nigeria. We also summarized the number and proportion of products that reported trans-fatty acids levels and the range of reported trans-fatty acids levels. In total, 99 out of 5668 (1.7%) products in Kenya and 310 out of 6316 (4.9%) products in Nigeria contained specific ingredients indicative of iTFAs. Bread and bakery products and confectioneries in both countries had the most foods that contained iTFAs-indicative ingredients. A total of 656 products (12%) in Kenya and 624 products (10%) in Nigeria contained non-specific ingredients that may indicate the presence of iTFAs. The reporting of levels of trans-fatty acids was low in both Kenya and Nigeria (11% versus 26%, respectively, p < 0.001). With the increasing burden of ischemic heart disease in Kenya and Nigeria, the rapid adoption of WHO best-practice policies and the mandatory declaration of trans-fatty acids are important for eliminating iTFAs.

Original languageEnglish
Article number761
JournalNutrients
Volume15
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 2023

Keywords

  • cardiovascular disease
  • hydrogenation
  • packaged food
  • trans-fatty acids

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