Physicochemical characteristics and nutritional potential of Parkia biglobosa ecotypes fruit pulps from Burkina Faso

Abstract

African locust bean (ALB) is a fruit tree indigenous to the savannah drylands of sub‐Saharan Africa. The pulp and
seeds of ALB are used as food and for income generation. The fruit pulp, despite its large consumption, has not
received so far significant attention regarding its biochemical composition.
The study aimed to determine the physicochemical characteristics and potential nutritional value of ALB pulp
collected from three phytogeographical regions of Burkina Faso and to determine whether the nutritive attri butes
and colour characteristics varied with the origin of the samples. Results indicated different level of vitamin C (1.11
± 0.01 to 27.85 ± 0.25 mg/100g DW), and α-carotene (0.05 ± 0.01 to 1.38 ± 0.09 mg/100 g DW).
Three different sugars, namely fructose (2.59 ± 0.02 to 6.35 ± 0.09 g/100 g DW), glucose (2.58 ± 0.19 to 6.31 ±
0.1 g/100 g DW) and sucrose (9.38 ± 0.11 to 15.71 ± 0.43 g/100 g DW) were detected in the pulp.
With regard to colour characteristics, the average yellow index value was highest (87.17 ± 2.23) in the SouthSoudanian ecoregion and lowest (62.51 ± 1.47) in the North-Soudanian ecoregion. Parkia pulp colour
characteristics and nutrient content (except for the °Brix value) varied significantly (P< .0001) among the selected
provenances. The results showed significant variation (P< 0.05) in pulp pH, acidity, colour characteristics, glucose,
fructose, sucrose, α-carotene and vit C content among the trees sampled, while no significant difference was found
for °Brix.
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