Effect Of Fish Consumption On Alleviation Of Protein Deficiency In The Diet Of Households In Owerri Agricultural Zone, Imo State, South Eastern, Nigeria

Abstract

The problem of malnutrition occasioned by low rate of animal protein intake on the daily nutritional needs of food consumers in Owerri Agricultural zone Southeastern Nigeria, was assessed. Owerri Zone being one of the three agricultural zones of Imo State south eastern Nigeria was selected because of the geographical spread of the inhabitants which covered all the three socioeconomic and cultural status of human dwellers namely; urban, semi urban and rural settlers. Results of this study revealed that level (s) of income of consumers in addition to cost, palatability and digestibility of fish have made fish more easily acceptable in the household menu of majority of the respondents than other animal protein foods. The results proved that majority of consumers (70.8%), get their fish purchased from the market, and the remaining fraction (29.2%), go theirs caught from the streams and rivers that transverse the Owerri Agricultural zone. Due to prevailing rural poverty and in search of daily living, there is increasing rate of rural-urban migration by youths who would have ordinarily increased the number of fishermen in the zone, thereby increasing the quantity of caught fish from the waters in the zone. Any government policy aimed at the establishment of fish pounds, storage and processing facilities in the zone, should be encouraged to create an enabling environment to investors and inhabitant of the area.

Keywords: Fish consumption, Protein deficiency, and Households diets, Owerri Southeastern Nigeria.

Global Approaches to Extension Practice Vol. 3 (1) 2007: pp. 12-20