Characterization analysis of date fruit pomace: An underutilized waste bioresource rich in dietary fiber and phenolic antioxidants

Current insights into date by-product valorization for sustainable food industries and technology

“…75 Date fruit pomace, generated during the production of date products such as pitted dates, date syrup, and confectionery, is a readily available and cost-effective substrate with a high content of reducing sugars, approximately 35%. 45,76,77 Hot water-assisted extraction of date syrup leaves behind 8–15 g/100 g and 17–24 g/100 g date seeds and date fruit pomace, respectively, as major industrial wastes. 78,79 Similar to date seeds, date fruit pomaces from syrup processing units, consisting of exhausted date flesh and residual sugars, are released in huge quantities annually, either being dumped into open lands as industrial waste or used in animal feed.…”

“…83,84 Dietary fiber in pomace comprises non-starch polysaccharides, such as arabinoxylans, cellulose, and other constituents like resistant starch, inulin, lignin, chitins, pectins, beta-glucans, and oligosaccharides. The antioxidant potential of pomace is explained by its total phenolic content in the range of 170–260 mg gallic acid equivalents GAE/100 g, 45 151 mg/100 g, 81 and by the presence of associated phenolic compounds, such as flavonoids, phenolic acids, quinones, sterols, and anthocyanins. 84 Further characterization revealed that fructose was the main simple sugar and that oleic acid was the prominent fatty acid in date pomace.…”

“…Second-class dates are also generated during picking, storing, or conditioning. Furthermore, the processing of date fruits into secondary products, such as confectionary dates, date paste, date fruit powder, vinegar, jam, chutney, date syrup, sugar, juice, and syrups, results in the generation of tons of waste in the form of fibrous date pomace (dibs) and seeds, 45,46 along with by-products like date seed flour hydrolysate (DSFH), date seed flour (DSF), defatted date seed, fermented date fruit puree, and date seed oil. 1 These by-products have industrial functional applications in food.…”

Approaches to Enhance Sugar Content in Foods: Is the Date Palm Fruit a Natural Alternative to Sweeteners?

“…The sugar composition varies, with sucrose predominant in dry dates, while soft dates are characterized by glucose and fructose. Additionally, the dietary fiber content in date pulp varies widely, including insoluble cellulose, hemicelluloses, pectin, hydrocolloids, and lignin [ 103 , 120 , 121 , 122 , 124 , 125 ].…”

“…In addition to carbohydrates, dates emerge as an exceptional source of proteins with a protein proportion of 2.5–6.5 g/100 g, fats, dietary fibers, and a spectrum of essential minerals and vitamins (rich in B-vitamins) [ 124 ]. Dates contain more than twenty different amino acids, which is uncommon in fruits [ 123 ].…”