Brad Farrant

Low vitamin D status and intake are prevalent among the Australian population, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. We hypothesised that some traditional foods could contain vitamin D, and measured vitamin D in foods from Nyoongar Country, Western Australia. Samples of kangaroo, emu, squid/calamari and lobster/crayfish were collected and prepared by Aboriginal people using traditional and contemporary methods. We measured vitamin D3, 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 (25(OH)D3), vitamin D2 and 25(OH)D2 using liquid chromatography-triple quadrupole mass spectrometry. Kangaroo meat and offal were largely devoid of vitamin D (no mean values >0.1 μg/100 g). Vitamin D3 was found in emu meat and calamari/squid (range 0.5–1.0 μg/100 g). No samples contained 25(OH)D3, vitamin D2 or 25(OH)D2 at mean values >0.1 μg/100 g. Modern food composition data can complement traditional knowledges in the promotion of traditional foods for healthy eating and social and emotional wellbeing among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.