ABSTRACT

Bread spread is a human-made butter substitute traditionally derived from vegetable oils, water, and salt, which are sources of polyunsaturated fats. These fats can contribute to heart health when consumed in moderation, especially when they replace saturated and trans fats, which are linked to adverse health effects. Therefore this work was designed to produce and evaluate the chemical and sensory attributes of ready to eat bread spread with improved nutritional benefits, to evaluate the proximate composition of the products, to determine the mineral and vitamin content and to evaluate the sensory composition of the bread spread. Standard method was used to evaluate the chemical and sensory attributes of the products, the means and standard deviation was calculated. ANOVA was used to separate the means. The results showed decreasing moisture content with increasing addition of coconut oil from (12.91 to 47.19%) and protein from (1.33 to 2.19%) while fat content increased from (15.76 to 61.53%), Crude fiber (3.43 - 5.75%) and Ash (2.25 - 3.15%). The addition of coconut oil resulted in decrease in the mineral content of the produced bread spread which at 100% had higher values than the commercial bread spread. The mineral content in the produced bread spread are as follows; Calcium (14.03 - 8.47mg/100g), Magnesium (27.26 - 15.79mg/100g), Potassium (488.6 - 298.1mg/100g), Sodium (707.83 - 695.03mg/100g), Phosphorus (67.2 - 41.23mg/100g), Iron(0.61 -0.36mg/100g) and Zinc (0.74 -0.35mg/100g). The vitamin content of the produced bread spread was mostly higher than those of the commercial spread (blue band) except in Pro- vitamin A and B₃ contents where fortification was suspected. Vitamins B₁ , B₂  and Vitamin C were found in unquantifiable traces in the commercial spread but had values ranging from (0.02 to 0.06mg/100g), (0.07 to 0.15mg/100g) and from (5.60 to 9.56mg/100g) respectively in the produced spread. The addition of coconut oil resulted in the decrease of minerals and vitamins in the product, yet the product retained high vitamin contents, than the commercial bread spread. Sample CAC 3 should be recommended for individuals looking to boost their dietary intake of vitamins, minerals and fiber. This blend offers a potential workaround for individuals with dairy allergies, who often struggle with bread spread options.