Chemical composition and nutritive value of peach palm (Bactris gasipaes Kunth) in rats

Abstract

The peach palm (Bactris gasipaes Kunth) is the starchy fruit of a palm tree widely cultivated in Central and South America. The present study aimed at determining its chemical composition and its nutritive value in rats. The average chemical composition of 17 samples was as follows: 410 g kg −1 water and, in g kg −1 of dry matter (DM), 54 g crude protein, 114 g oil, 39 g neutral detergent fibre, 716 g starch, 21 g sugars and 18 g ash. The main variability was observed for the oil (60-180 g kg −1 DM) and starch (590-780 g DM) contents. The proteins contained, on average, in g kg −1 of proteins, 49 g lysine, 13 g methionine, 19 g cysteine, 39 g threonine and 7 g tryptophan. The mineral fraction contained, per kg DM: 1.0 g Ca, 0.8 g P, 0.6 g Mg, 0.3 g Na, 44 mg Fe, 4 mg Cu and 10 mg Zn. The digestibility of four peach palm genotypes was determined in rats fed a diet composed of 350 g kg −1 of peach palm and 650 g of a control diet based on maize and soybean meal. The digestibility of DM, energy, starch and protein of peach palm alone reached, on average 91, 87, 96 and 95%, respectively. No difference was observed between varieties, except for starch (p < 0.05). On average, peach palm contained 51 g of truly digestible protein kg −1 DM and 3.691 kcal digestible energy kg −1 DM. A growth trial was also carried out for 1 month on rats (initial weight: 78 g) fed a diet containing 0, 200, 400, 600 or 800 g peach palm kg −1 , at the expense of a diet composed of maize starch and casein. The growth rate of the rats decreased (p < 0.05) as the peach palm concentration increased. The growth decrease was due to a decrease (p < 0.05) in DM intake and to the lower quality of the peach palm protein. It is concluded that peach palm is mainly an energy source for humans and animals. It is poor in protein and minerals but can be consumed in large amounts.

Peach palm (Bactris gasipaes) in tropical Latin America: implications for biodiversity conservation, natural resource management and human nutrition

“…Dry matter was strongly correlated with texture both in raw and cooked peach palm. It is also correlated with fat and protein content Rodriguez et al 2009), though starch content was found to be inversely correlated with oil (Leterme et al 2005;Giraldo et al 2009). Carrera (1999) studied the chemical and physical properties of starches isolated from six Peruvian peach palm phenotypes.…”

“…Fruit diameter varies from 1 to 9 cm, and mean fruit weight normally ranges from 20 to 65 g, though fruits may weigh up to 225 g ( Fig. 3; Arkcoll and Aguiar 1984;Leterme et al 2005;Rivera 2009). …”

“…Peach palm can be consumed in large quantities, serving mainly as an energy source that is poor in proteins and minerals (Leterme et al 2005). Its nutritional composition varies depending on the ecotype and geographic region.…”

“…The most important mineral elements in peach palm are potassium, selenium and chromium . One kilogram of peach palm protein contains, on average, 16-49 g of lysine, 8-13 g of methionine, 19 g of cysteine, 27-39 g of threonine and 4.5-7 g of tryptophan (Leterme et al 2005). The fruits contain all essential and non-essential amino acids, with tryptophan and methionine showing the lowest concentrations .…”

Caracterización fisicoquímica de harina de residuos del fruto de chontaduro (Bactris gasipaes Kunth, Arecaceae) obtenida por secado convectivo

“…Su distribución se extiende desde Panamá hasta Bolivia, en regiones con una altitud inferior a 1.000 msnm, con precipitaciones anuales entre 2.000 y 5.000 mm y temperatura media anual de más de 22 °C (Leterme et al, 2005;Pinzón, Zapata, & Ordóñez, 2015). Pertenece a la familia de las palmáceas (Arecaceae) y es conocido con nombres comunes de acuerdo con la región donde se consume: chontaduro, pejibaye, cachipay, peripao y pupuña macanilla, entre otros (Restrepo, Vinasco, & Estupiñán, 2012).…”