## 3 Results and Discussion  
### Proximate Composition of Hemp Flour and Minced Meat Products  
The proximate composition of hemp flour is presented in Table 3. The protein and fat contents were found to be lower than those reported by [PERSON] et al. [45] for flour obtained from the Fedora cultivar, with a protein content of 30.7% and that of fat of 13.6%. The nutrient content of hemp flour from the Fedora cultivar has not been extensively studied. However, in various studies, the reported protein and fat content ranges from 22.4 to 36.2 g/100 g and 4.7 to 9.1 g/100 g, respectively [46; 47; 48]. The residual sodium nitrite content of this type of hemp flour is 1.18 mg/kg, but there are no publications, to the best of our knowledge, studying the nitrite content of hemp flour that would allow comparison of the results. In general, this product's residual nitrite content is low compared to that of other food products of plant origin [49]. Table 4 shows the proximate compositions and residual nitrite levels of the minced meat products. Significant differences were observed in terms of moisture content, with samples in the HF6 treatment showing lower moisture content. The ash content also differed significantly (\(p<0.01\)) between the samples in the control treatment (HF0) and those in the treatments containing hemp flour (HF4 and HF6). This difference is attributed to the markedly higher levels (\(p<0.001\)) of sodium chloride in the HF0 group compared to those in the HF4 and HF6 groups. The sodium chloride content of the wheat breadcrumbs (1.5 g/100 g--the declared value) contributed to the variations in sodium chloride observed between treatments. This significant difference (\(p<0.001\)) in sodium nitrite levels stems \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c} \hline \hline
**Variable** & **Value** \\ \hline \multicolumn{2}{c}{Proximate composition} \\ \hline Protein (g/100 g) & 24.5 \\ Fat (g/100 g) & 9.4 \\ Sodium Chloride (g/100 g) 1 & 0.02 \\ Sodium Nitrite (mg/kg) & 1.18 \\ \hline \multicolumn{2}{c}{Fatty acid composition} \\ \hline C16:0 & 9.47 \\ C18:0 & 3.29 \\ C18:1 & 15.84 \\ C18:2 _n-6 cis_ & 52.57 \\ C18:3 _n-6_ & 2.81 \\ C18:3 _n-3_ & 11.88 \\ SFA & 14.39 \\ MUFA & 16.11 \\ PUFA & 68.82 \\ \hline \multicolumn{2}{c}{Antioxidant profile} \\ \hline TPC 2 (mg GAE/g) & 1.10 \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular} 1  
\end{table} 
Table 3: Compositional characterisation of hemp flour. from the levels of added nitrites within the batter of the minced meat products. The content of residual nitrites from the hemp flour was negligible, given that the sodium nitrite content was 1.18 mg/kg (Table 3). The addition of 6% hemp flour lowered the sodium chloride content to approximately 15%, resulting in a healthier product [50,51] and aligning with the food reformulation efforts toward reducing sodium intake [52], considering that processed meat products comprise one of the major sources of dietary sodium intake in the form of sodium chloride [53]. The inclusion of hemp flour at 6% levels resulted in a lower moisture content, a result consistent with the findings reported by [PERSON] et al. [18] for meat balls containing varying hemp cake levels and the results reported by [PERSON] et al. [17] regarding pork meat leaves containing hemp flour. Additionally, there were no differences in the ash content in meat balls and meat loaves containing either hemp cake or hemp flour [17,18]. Despite hemp flour having a high protein content (24.5 g/100 g) and moderate fat content (9.4 g/100 g), (Table 3) there were no alterations in the protein and fat levels of the minced meat products, indicating that the added hemp flour levels were insufficient to affect the nutrient composition of the patties. These findings align with the results from the previously mentioned studies conducted by [PERSON] et al. [18] and [PERSON] et al. [17].