Global Malnutrition Report

Few challenges facing the global community today match the scale of malnutrition, a condition that directly affects one in three people. Malnutrition manifests itself in many different ways: as poor child growth and development; as individuals who are skin and bone or prone to infection; as those who are carrying too much weight or whose blood contains too much sugar, salt, fat, or cholesterol; or those who are deficient in important vitamins or minerals. Malnutrition and diet are by far the biggest risk factors for the global burden of disease: every country is facing a serious public health challenge from malnutrition.

The economic consequences represent losses of 11 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) every year in Africa and Asia, whereas preventing malnutrition delivers $16 in returns on investment for every $1 spent. The world’s countries have agreed on targets for nutrition, but despite some progress in recent years the world is off track to reach those targets. This third stocktaking of the state of the world’s nutrition points to ways to reverse this trend and end all forms of malnutrition by 2030.

Over the past decade, momentum around nutrition has been steadily building, with governments and stakeholders around the world acknowledging nutrition as a key component of development. In 2015, the Sustainable Development Goals enshrined the objective of "ending all forms of malnutrition", challenging the world to think and act differently on malnutrition—to focus on all its faces and work to end it, for all people, by 2030.

The Global Nutrition Report is the only independent and comprehensive annual review of the state of the world’s nutrition. It is a multipartner initiative that holds a mirror up to our successes and failures at meeting intergovernmental nutrition targets. It documents progress on commitments made on the global stage, and it recommends actions to accelerate that progress. The Global Nutrition Report aims to be a beacon, providing examples of change and identifying opportunities for action. This year’s report focuses on the theme of making—and measuring— SMART commitments to nutrition and identifying what it will take to end malnutrition in all its forms by 2030.

‪‎Mushroom Marketing in INDIA‬ (Point to remember & highlight)

Mushrooms are fleshy, spore-bearing reproductive structures of fungi.

For a long time, wild edible mushrooms have played an important role as a human food.

Mushroom production is completely different from growing green plants.

Mushrooms do not contain chlorophyll and therefore
depend on other plant material (the “substrate”) for their food.

Mushroom, a protein-rich wonder food which does not have any publicity as it deserves.

It is this precious vegetable that would solve the problem of protein malnutrition in our country.

Coffee pulp, either as a sole substrate or supplemented with other organic materials, can be used as a substrate for growing the edible mushrooms Pleurotus, Lentinula, and Auricularia.

Four types of mushrooms viz., white button, oyster, paddy straw and milky mushrooms have been adopted by farmers/ entrepreneurs at marginal and commercial scale in different parts of the country at present.

Mushroom cultivation is a well-established and profitable biotechnological process carried out worldwide on a large or small scale.

From a production standpoint, the white button mushroom has the highest growth rate and potential for production.

The supply and demand gap in the world trade of mushrooms and the shrinkage of production in countries like Taiwan and South Korea due to high labor costs would result in better market prices for Indian mushroom producers.

Cultivated mushrooms are edible fungi that grow on decaying organic matter, known as a substrate.

Mushrooms have a high nutritional value and are high in protein.

They are also a good source of vitamins (B1, B2, B12 and C), essential amino acids, and carbohydrates but are low in fat
and fibre and contain no starch.

It is also known to have medicinal values and certain varieties of mushrooms can inhibit growth of cancerous tumor.

Many by-products from agricultural production and food processing can be used as growing media in mushroom production.

The market for mushrooms continues to grow due to interest in their nutritional and health benefits.

The market for mushrooms has been expanding in recent years.

The trend is away from the canned product toward fresh and dried mushroom sales.

Recently The Packer, a produce industry weekly, reported that, according to a recent marketing survey, of the families that
purchased mushrooms in the previous year, 86% purchased button mushrooms and 70% purchased specialty species.

U.S. fresh-market sales are the largest market for mushrooms; an estimated 85 percent of total annual sales in CY 2007/08 were of mushrooms for the fresh market.

Currently, oyster mushrooms are currently being produced in Uganda for the dried export market.

Shiitake mushrooms have been commercially grown in the United States for over 20 years and are now well accepted by American gourmet markets.

Mushroom cultivation is a good example for the use of forestal not-timber resources.

The majority of mushrooms are grown in the border counties of Ulster, the North West, the Midlands and the South East.

As mushrooms become increasingly popular, consumers are searching for more and more variation within them in terms of colour, texture and shape of cap/length of stalk. The recent increase in demand for brown, oyster and shiitake mushrooms reflects this trend.

Demand for mushrooms is at a peak during the winter/spring /autumn months as they are used extensively in the preparation of hot vegetable based dishes.

Small-scale mushroom production is now being carried out in many rural and suburban peasant communities throughout the country.

The mushroom production was sold directly by mushroom growers to retailers who marketed it directly to consumers.

Mushrooms have been valued throughout the world as both food and medicine for thousands of years.

Mushrooms are gradually becoming popular as they are rich in minerals and vitamins and very low on fat and sugar.

Mushrooms are very popular in most of the developed countries and they are becoming popular in many developing countries like India.

Key steps in mushroom production

The basic concept in cultivation is to start with some mushroom spores, which grow into mycelium and expand into a mass sufficient in volume and stored up energy to support the final phase of the mushroom reproductive cycle, which
is the formation of fruiting bodies or mushrooms.

The key generic steps in mushroom production – a cycle that
takes between one to three months from start to finish depending on species – are

1) Identifying and cleaning a dedicated room or building in which temperature, moisture and sanitary conditions can be controlled to grow mushrooms in;

2) Choosing a growing medium and storing the raw ingredients in a clean place under cover and protected
from rain;

3) Pasteurising or sterilizing the medium and bags in which, or tables on which, mushrooms will be grown (to exclude other fungi that would compete for the same space - once the selected fungi has colonized the substrate it can fight off the
competition);

4) Seeding the beds with spawn (spores from mature mushrooms grown on sterile media);

5) Maintaining optimal temperature, moisture, hygiene and other conditions for mycelium growth and fruiting, which is the most challenging step; adding water to the substrate to raise the moisture content since it helps ensure efficient
sterilization;

6) Harvesting and eating, or processing, packaging and selling the mushrooms;

7) Cleaning the facility and beginning again.

The ‪‎Potential‬ of the ‪Mushroom‬ ‪‎Industry‬ in ‪‎India‬

India is not a major producer of any of the mushroom varieties, but it does cultivate mushrooms and has great potential as an important producer in the future. From a production standpoint, the white button mushroom has the highest growth rate and potential for production.

However, the cultivation of oyster mushrooms has been more common since the end of the last century, when the infrastructure of oyster mushroom growing was much improved and therefore capital requirements went way down in comparison with the requirements for white button mushroom cultivation.

Though India’s present share in the world production and trade of oyster mushroom is meager, being only an estimated 2,000 tons, the potential for the future is rated as high for a variety of reasons.

India has a very large availability of various types of raw substrate material such as wheat straw, paddy straw, bagasse, chicken manure, gypsum, tea waste, de-oiled cakes and so forth in almost all the regions and these materials are relatively inexpensive when compared with international prices.

In 2001-2002, the production of wheat and paddy in India was estimated to be 73.53-90.75 million tons respectively. Although the residue straws are commonly used as fodder, almost 50% of the crop residues are still potentially available for the growing of mushrooms.

India has large number of agro-climatic regions that offer congenial climatic conditions for mushroom cultivation. India also has a good combination of both the technical and non-technical manpower needed to operate and manage the mushroom growing operations.

The supply and demand gap in the world trade of mushrooms and the shrinkage of production in countries like Taiwan and South Korea due to high labor costs would result in better market prices for Indian mushroom producers.

The costs of building materials and other inputs related to construction costs are much lower in India than in many other countries. This keeps the investment cost per unit weight of mushroom produced more advantageous in India India is also developing its infrastructure rapidly and therefore enjoys a
large and well-organized distribution network that facilitates the marketing of products in order to meet domestic consumer demands.

From a dietary standpoint mushrooms are a particularly favorable food in vegetarian-predominant India. With a domestic population of more than one billion, India itself is a large market for mushrooms.

The per capita consumption of mushrooms in India is currently only about 25g per year although there has been a steady increase in the consumption of exotic mushrooms including oyster mushrooms in addition to the use of regular button mushrooms. This increase can be seen as a highly encouraging sign coming from the potential mushroom consumers in India.

Cultivated mushrooms are available today in all common vegetable shops, grocery stores, department stores in both small and big towns in India.

One final reason for optimism concerning India’s potential as a major mushroom producer is its strategic geographical location with respect to exportation, making it convenient to export oyster mushrooms to the Middle East, Europe, the United States, Africa, and Southeast Asia.

For ‪‎Better‬ ‪‎Mushroom‬ ‪‎Industry‬ in ‪‎India‬

Most growers in India are self-employed and operating small-scale farms. They have different backgrounds with low or no knowledge of running small biological enterprises. Many short-sighted and non-committed growers are getting out of mushroom growing enterprises due to small setbacks they encounter before they accumulate enough experience in mushroom cultivation management.

This situation creates fluctuations in the total number of oyster mushrooms growing units and causes an inconsistent supply-demand curve in the marketplace. This in turn causes
the market price for oyster mushroom producing growers to fluctuate. As such, the market of oyster mushroom is highly localized with individual traders having great control on prices. The retail price of fresh oyster mushroom
varies in India from INR*50-200 per kg.

To make the oyster mushroom growing business more profitable, the following efforts should be made:

* The present growers must join hands to form co-operative societies in order to share the technical information on day to day growing and spawn production, and in order to control the price of mushrooms in the market place.

* The idea of co-operative formation among growers is already proposed among the grower communities but no leader has emerged to date.

* The costs of production should be maintained as low as possible by utilizing the local agricultural residue.

* Introduction of value-added products like oyster mushroom powder for soups, and oyster mushroom pizza should be made.

* Mature and committed entrepreneurs should be encouraged to become involved in the mushroom industry.

* The Indian government sectors must take the initiative in assisting in the marketing of fresh and processed oyster mushrooms for export by purchasing crops from the small scale mushroom farms. The revenue from this process can later be utilized in improving the rural infrastructure.

Mushroom Nutritional Value: Medical World's Oldest Known Cancer Fighting Ingredient

Mushrooms have been always valued as a folk medicine but in the last decade mushrooms have gained tremendous popularity due to its pharmaceutical potential. There are very few foods available in nature that can help in the treatment and management of different diseases and mushroom is one such magical food. It doesn’t just promote good health and overall wellbeing, but they also are very famous for their unique taste and subtle flavor. Recently mushrooms have emerged as a superfood due to the presence of antioxidants, anti-cancer, anti-diabetic, antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties in them.

Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus
Many researches have shown that mushrooms help to reduce plasma glucose levels, high cholesterol levels, as well as systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Since a very long time, medicinal mushrooms have been identified as a remarkable therapeutic agent. Medicinal mushrooms have various bioactive compounds which make them anti-diabetic agents. China, India, Japan, and Korea are some countries with a long history of use of mushrooms for the disease treatment. The polysaccharide (β-glucans) present in mushrooms helps to restore the functions of pancreatic tissue, thus causing an increase in the output of insulin. This further improves the sensitivity of insulin and helps to reduce the plasma glucose level. Therefore, mushroom can be made a part of the healthy diabetic diet as they contain fewer calories, little or no fat and cholesterol and they are loaded with lots of vitamins and minerals. In addition to this mushroom has no harmful toxicity effects on liver and kidney. Thus diabetics can consume mushroom safely without causing damage to their kidneys.

Altered Lipid Profile
Many studies have found that consumption of mushrooms lowers total cholesterol, triglyceride, and low-density lipoprotein levels (LDL, Bad cholesterol). Thus, the presence of bioactive compounds in mushrooms has a positive effect on the lipid profile. As cholesterol, triglyceride and LDL levels are lowered, the risk of cardiovascular diseases is also reduced. The studies also observed a rise in total cholesterol and triglyceride levels soon after mushroom consumption was stopped or withdrawn. Restarting mushroom consumption again showed a decrease in the cholesterol and triglyceride levels. It clearly shows the impact of mushroom consumption on lipid profile. Therefore, people with altered lipid profile should make mushroom an important part of their daily diet.

Immunity
Many people consume different types of dietary supplements to boost their immune system. But recently some studies have found that consumption of mushrooms or mushroom extracts in the form of dietary supplements can strengthen the immune system and keep infections at bay. Mushrooms have stimulatory action on immune responsiveness, that is, it improves the immunity and helps it to react quickly against any harmful foreign substance that may be dangerous for the body. In other words mushroom plays a vital role in providing protection to the body.

Cancer
Chemotherapy and radiotherapy have various side-effects such as weight loss, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or loose motions and poor immunity. Research has found that mushrooms help to reduce these side-effects and help the cancer patients undergoing such treatment feel better. Some anti-cancer agents have also been identified in different types of mushrooms. A number of bioactive compounds present in mushrooms include ash, flavonoids, volatile oils, polysaccharides, protein, fat, alkaloids, phenolics, tocopherols, enzymes and organic acids. Lentinan, krestin, lectin, calcaelin and illudin S are some of the active compounds in mushrooms responsible for conferring anti-cancer properties. Further research has also shown that mushroom when coupled with anti-cancer drugs act as an effective tool in the treatment of cancer.

Nutritional value and antioxidants in fruiting bodies of (Pleurotus ostreatus) Oyster mushroom

The fresh and dried fruiting bodies of cultivated P. ostreatus
are accomplished by using different chemical analytical methods. The results are showing that the nutritional value is including: energy 236.624 & 56.05 kcal/100g; moisture content 86.33 & 5.155%; also the following constitutes by g/100g DW in fresh and dry samples: dry matters 13.667 & 94.844; total proteins 22.6 & 9.6; amino acids 3.43 & 0.68; total carbohydrates 35.1 & 2.83 and total lipids 0.91 & 0.77. Each of K, Mg, Zn, Na and Cu are determined by mg/100g DW. Antioxidant metabolites are detected and included ascorbic acid 2.395 & 0.6204 g/100g DW in fresh & dry samples, respectively; free phenols are 23.99 & 163.515 and bounded phenols are 2.85 &1.96 µg/100g in fresh & dry samples, respectively.

Comparison between the fresh and dry P. ostreatus samples appeared that the fresh sample has high nutritional value with highest values in all tested parameters. Also the dry samples had the higher contents of four minerals (1696.25 K, 90.25 Mg, 21 Zn, and 4.5 Cu mg/100g DW comparing to the fresh sample (1402.5 K, 74.25 Mg, 18.25 Zn, and Cu 4.0). On the other side, the levels of each of Fe were 179.75 & 78 and Na 417.7 & 204.25 mg/100g DW, respectively).

Since human civilization, fruiting bodies of mushrooms (Agaricus bisporus, Pleurotus spp. and Lentinula edodes) are appreciated for texture and flavour as well as widely accepted as food flavouring material in soups for centuries. Global production of the cultivated mushroom around the world are 6.2 million tonnes with approximate value at least 14 billion $US in 1997, with a more than 12% increase annually from 1997 to 1981. Paul Stamets is a mycologist who used the tree oyster mushroom names Pleurotus ostreatus (Jacq. ex Fr.). Pleurotus ostreatus takes the third mushroom kind in the mushroom production around the world. It also represents 70% from the total global mushrooms production.

Pleurotus ostreatus is very popular wild and cultivated edible mushroom around the world and having a high rank in the market because of low cost, production technology as well as high biological efficiency, nutritional, flavoring and medicinal values. It often has the scent of anise with delicious, texture and high productivity/unit area and has been recognized as an exceptional food source to alleviate malnutrition in developing countries.

It is used as a healthy as a nutritive manufacturing. Pleurotus has a high biological activity, low toxicity and is used in folk classical medicine, flavour of food industry, perfume, cosmetics and pharmaceutical industries, as defoaming
agents and to improve shelf life and safety of minimally processed fruits. The wild P. ostreatus favorite for
cocustomer due to its flavor and texture.

The highest nutritional value of P. ostreatus depend on the presence of high level of protein 25-50%, essential amino acids (arginine, alanine, glutamine, & glutamic acid), carbohydrates 17–47% (no starch, but found the glucans, mannitol, trehalose and it also contains small amounts of arabitol, which may cause gastrointestinal upset for some people [4]), many of vitamins as "thiamine (B1), riboflavin (B2), niacin (B3), folic acid (B9), C, D and K", fibers (7–38%) and ash (8–12%). It has a high contents of minerals such as Ca, P, Fe, K, Mn, Cu, Zn, Mg and Se.

Pleurotus ostreatus has higher content of iron and acts as a very good iron source for treatment the anemia, it is also very poor in lipid content and have high contents of lovastatin as anticholesterol agents and essentials unsaturated fatty acids including oleic, linoleic, α-linolenic and palmitic. On the other side P. ostreatus contains few digestible carbohydrates and very low (calories "each 100 g have 28 k/Cal", 2-5% fats and Na). Pleurotus contains high potassium to sodium ratio, which makes it is an ideal food for patients suffering from hypertension and heart diseases.

Pleurotus ostreatus has high nutritional value which reassigns their medicinal value and riches by numerous bioactive antioxidant metabolites. It was used as a traditional oriental medicine and has beneficial health effects without any negative side-effects. It used as a source of powerful new pharmaceutical products and has many bioactive metabolites, specially it possess antioxidant metabolites which used in prevention of many dangerous disease such as anticancer, immunomodulatory, hepatoprotective, antidiabites, antimicrobial, antiinflammatory, support human health agents, anticholesterol and anti-cardiovascular diseases.

Pleurotus ostreatus is efficient lignin cellulosic degraders and can grow on wide variety of agricultural wastes. It has the ability to produce many enzymes such as amylases, pectinases, xylanases, cellulases, chitinases, proteases, lipases, β-galactosidases, inulinase, phytase, protease and laccase with broad adaptability. It is also used in bioremediation industries. Pleurotus ostreatus is riches in fatty acid including, myristic, stearic, eleostearic, palmitic, olic, margaric, heptadsenoic, arachidic and icosenoic acids. Fatty acids are important sources of fuel for brain cells, heart and skeletal muscle because when metabolized its yield large quantities of ATP.

Pleurotus ostreatus could be very useful for vegetarians and helpful to overcome the deficiency in protein and amino acid. It contains the most essential amino acids.

This investigation has been designed to determine the nutritional value of P. ostreatus including energy, total
proteins, free amino acids, total carbohydrates, total lipids and mineral analysis. Some antioxidant contents especially ascorbic acid and phenolic compounds were also detected. A comparison between the fresh and dried P. ostreatus samples for selecting the highest nutritional value for being consumed as a healthy food and medicinal diet in international medicinal centers for prevention or treatment numerous human diseases which formed from the nutritional deficiency were also aimed.