Fortification of sorghum beer with thiamin

The consumption of indigenous cereal-based fermented beer is widespread throughout Africa and other parts of the world. In some countries such beer is brewed commercially as well as at home. As evidence of beri-beri may occur in habitual consumers of the beer, the thiamin content of beer brewed commercially from a mixture of sorghum and maize was investigated. Thiamin concentration in beer averaged 0.33 mg/l, with more than 95% in the cellular fraction, mainly live yeast cells. The thiamin in the cells is not generally available for absorption and the cells take up thiamin added to the beer. At low concentrations (0.25-0.5 mg/l) up to 90% of added 14C-thiamin was taken up by the cells but with concentrations in excess of 2.5 mg/l, the uptake was less than 30%. These results indicate that fortification of sorghum beer with thiamin is feasible. The addition of 2.5 mg/l would supply up to 1.6 mg of absorbable thiamin and thus meet the recommended daily allowance in the target group of habitual consumers.