Children first
Thu, 07 Jun 2012 14:15:00 BST
Nigerian food scientist Morris Aloysius seeks affordable, nutritious alternatives
A NIGERIAN student at the University of Huddersfield is conducting research that could lead to nutritious but easily affordable baby and infant foods for countries in the developing world.
Morris Aloysius (pictured), who is completing his MSc degree in nutrition and food sciences at the University, has used ingredients that are commonly and easily cultivated in Africa to create prototypes for baby foods that could be up to seven times cheaper than the products marketed by major manufacturers.
“I have always been passionate about nutrition for children,” said Morris, who obtained qualifications in his native Nigeria and worked as a teacher and lab instructor at the Federal Polytechnic in Nasarawa before taking up the opportunity to travel to UK and study for his postgraduate degree in Huddersfield.
The health of children is a vital investment for the future, says Morris, but he warns that if there is a nutritional deficiency in early childhood, it is difficult to rectify the problems at a later stage.
As part of the research for his MSc dissertation, Morris has analysed the range of baby and infant foods from a major manufacturer. And he has developed his own equivalents. Using the lab facilities at the University of Huddersfield he has worked on creating foods based around ingredients such as sorghum – a cereal widely cultivated in Africa that is rich in carbohydrates – and bambara nuts – which are rich in protein food and amino acids.
Morris described his work when invited to make a presentation at Young Scientist of the Year Competition organised by the North of England branch of the Institute of Food Science and Technology. The event was organised by the University of Huddersfield’s Department of Nutrition and Health.
Morris is now in the final phase of his MSc project. One of his goals is to locate and work with a company, possibly based in Nigeria, which can manufacture and market his nutritious and affordable baby and infant food.
