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Research Article
The current research investigated the proximate, mineral content and phytochemical constituents
of five (5) food wastes, namely: Telfairia occidentalis (fluted pumpkin) seed peels and pod;
Artocarpus camansi (breadnut) seed peels and creamy pulp and Mucuna urens (horse eye bean)
seed peels. The results of the proximate analysis of the food wastes revealed that the samples
have varying percentage range of 51.70-70.25 for carbohydrate, 7.35-11.90 for protein, 1.90-6.20
for fat, 2.80-11.60 for fiber, 3.40-15.25 for ash and 4.40-18.15 for moisture. The percentage
carbohydrate content showed that pumpkin seed peel had the lowest yield while pumpkin pod
peel had the highest. The result of the mineral analysis revealed that the five food wastes analysed
contain Zn, K, P, Ca, Mg, Fe and Na, however, the levels of Fe, Ca, P and Mg were significantly
higher (p<0.05) relative to the other minerals. The phytochemical estimation of the samples
showed that the food wastes contain several bioactive compounds in different concentrations.
Some of the phytochemicals found in the food wastes are spartein, phytate, anthocyanin, tannin,
lunamarin, ribalinidine, catechin, rutin, kaempferol, oxalate, epicatechin, phenol and sapogenin.
This study revealed that these food wastes possess some nutritive and medicinal potential.
Key words: Nutrient, Bioactive component, Telfairia occidentalis, Artocarpus camansi, Mucuna urens,
INTRODUCTION
As the production of food is resource-intensive, food a final destination for the waste, which can create pollution.
losses and wastes are indirectly accompanied by a broad Sustainable development based on the concept of bio-
range of environmental impacts, such as soil erosion, refinery has produced alternatives that facilitate waste
deforestation, water and air pollution, as well as recovery. The food processing by-products can be
greenhouse gas emissions that occur in the processes of transformed into biomaterials or bio-fuels by fermentation
food production, storage, transportation, and waste (Gutiérrez-Macía, 2015). One key area that has received
management (Mourad, 2016; Schanes et al., 2018 ). tremendous support is the campaign of enzymatic,
Waste management is a major problem facing agro-allied chemical and biological transformation of agro-waste to
industries, especially in developing countries. In its value-added products which are useful in diverse sectors
simplest term, agro-waste food is the residue resulting (Techobanoglous, 1993). Given the high amounts of agro-
from food processing activities which are often discarded food waste occurring on the household level, the
or mostly not eaten hence lost to the environment. In most prevention of food waste at the final stages of the supply
cases, agro-wastes or plant biomass generated by these chain is of utmost importance to help prevent further
agro-allied industries are burnt in the open, often resulting climate change (Parfitt et al., 2010). There is, however, still
in environmental pollution (Babayemi et al., 2009). Food a relative paucity of scientific research on the utilization of
processing by-products and wastes are generated from agro-food wastes. Thyberg and Tonjes (2016) have
direct consumption or industrialization of primary products
that are no longer useful for food processing. Currently, in *Corresponding Author: Ogunka-Nnoka U. Charity,
several developing countries there is insufficient Department of Biochemistry, University of Port Harcourt,
infrastructure, technology, financial resources, and Choba, Rivers State, Nigeria.
specific legislation to facilitate proper disposal and provide Email: cogunkannoka@yahoo.co.uk
provided a literature review of the causes of agro-food pumpkin) is a cultivar of a squash plant with thick shell
waste which concentrates on cultural, political, economic, (pod) containing seed and pulp. The seed is the means of
and geographic drivers, with a particular focus on the US. propagation. It is nutritionally rich in minerals such as zinc
There is a great need to continuously screen food wastes which helps balance hormones and aids in hair growths. A
for their potential food value; this is mainly because these number of researches have been carried out on fluted
food wastes are linked to several facets of the economical, pumpkin edible seed (Eddy et al., 2011; Udo and Alozie,
ethical, and environmental and even the immediate 2016; Agatemor. 2006; Yusuf et al., 2006). Artocarpus
households of our national life. carmansi (breadnut seed) has been considered as a seed
bread fruit. This plant is grown for its nutritious seeds. It is
There are many agricultural food waste materials (Figures also a good source of protein (Adeleke and Abiodun,
1-4) generated in homes and littered all over the 2010). Mucuna urens (horse eye bean) is one of the
environment mostly around the southern part of Nigeria. lesser-known legumes of a greater nutritional potential.
These materials include waste products from Telfairia Studies on the nutrient composition showed that the bean
occidentalis (fluted pumpkin), Artocarpus camansi is a good source of protein, (23-35%), carbohydrate (50-
(Breadnut seeds) and Mucuna urens (Horse eye bean 56%) and fat (8-11%) as reported by Umoren et al., (2007).
seed) known as pumpkin pod peel (PPP), pumpkin seed Increasing concerns about food security and
peel (PSP) Breadnut seed peel (BSP), Breadnut creamy environmental impacts, such as resource depletion and
pulp (BCP) and Horse eye bean peel (HBP) respectively. greenhouse gas emissions attributed to food waste, have
These wastes are potentially viable source of agricultural intensified attention to evaluate the nutrient and bioactive
components which needs to be harnessed for other uses potentials of the waste components of Telfairia
and to save the environment since they are biodegradable occidentalis, Artocarpus carmansi and Mucuna Urens.
to useful goods and services. Telfairia occidentalis (fluted
Figure 1: Artocarpus camansi (Breadnut) edible seeds Figure 2: Artocarpus camansi (Breadnut) showing
the creamy pulp
Figure 3: Mucuna urens (Horse eye bean) Figure 4: Telfaira occidentalis (Flutted pumpkin) pod
A total of 2g of the dried sample each was weighed into Results are expressed as mean ± standard error of
different digestion flasks, then the following was added to triplicate determination. Statistical analysis was carried out
each flask; 200ml of the acid mixture of 650ml using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). Data
concentrated nitric acid, 80ml perchloric acid, and 20ml between groups were analyzed by the least significant
concentrated sulphuric acid. The flask was heated until a difference (LSD) test using Statistical Package for the
clear digest was obtained. The digest was diluted with de- Social Science (SPSS Version 20 statistics software at
ionised water to the 250ml mark. Appropriate dilutions are 95% (p< 0.05) confidence level.
then made for each element. Sodium, potassium, calcium,
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION shelf life (Tressler et al., 1980). The highest moisture and
protein contents were recorded for PSP and BSP
Proximate composition respectively. This means that the deteriorative rate of PSP
is high compared to the other food wastes. While the
The proximate composition (Table 2) of the food wastes protein level indicates that these food wastes can be
show that they comprise varying content of the major supplemented in animal diets for growth and tissue
nutrients. The percentage moisture (18.15±0.03%) was maintenance. Adeleke and Abiodun (2010) reported
highest in pumpkin seed peel while pumpkin pod peel had moisture and protein contents of 60.96% and 4.87%
the lowest moisture (4.40±0.01%) content. Breadnut respectively for the edible component of breadnut seed.
creamy pulp showed the highest percentage of ash While Ragone (2006) also reported 56.0-66.2% and 13.3-
(15.25±0.04%) content, followed by horse eye bean peel 19.19% for moisture and protein contents of breadnut seed
(14.90±0.05%) while pumpkin pod peel has the lowest ash respectively. BCP had the highest ash content; an
(3.40±0.04%) content. The percentage fiber content indication of a better mineral source. The carbohydrate
shows horse eye bean peel (11.60±0.02%) to be rich in content recorded for pumpkin pod peel (PPP) will serve as
fiber while breadnut seed peel (2.80±0.02 %) had the a good source of energy, while HBP will be useful in
lowest fiber as well as the highest protein (11.90±0.05%) digestion and the removal of bile acids due to its fiber
content. The percentage crude fat value indicates that content. Edhioda et al. (2018) reported on the
breadnut seed peel has a lower fat content when carbohydrate content of 15.15% for pumpkin seed; while
compared to the rest of the samples. Breadnut creamy Effiong and Umoren (2011) reported on the crude fiber
pulp has the highest fat value. The highest carbohydrate level of 5.04% for the edible component of horse eye bean.
content was observed in pumpkin pod peel; while pumpkin The study revealed that these food wastes possess rich
seed peel had the lowest carbohydrate content. The nutrient for ruminant and non-ruminant animals.
moisture content in a food sample is an indication of its
food wastes may not be a good source of this mineral. Zinc compounds present in the agricultural food wastes. The
is important in general metabolism. It facilitates several result (Table 3) shows that PSP is rich in a number of
enzymatic processes related to the metabolism of protein, phytochemicals, namely; spartein, phytate, anthocyanin,
carbohydrates, and fats. Zinc also helps form the structure tannin, lunamarin, ribalinidine, catechin, rutin and
of proteins and enzymes and is involved in the regulation kaemferol in varying concentrations (0.0025-51.38 µg/ml).
of gene expression (Otten et al., 2006). The low content of PPP analysis showed it contains spartein, phytate,
Zn is beneficial in the light of the toxicity associated with anthocyanin, tannin, rutin, oxalate and epicatechin
heavy metal accumulation in the body (Ighodaro et al., (0.0019-61.2066 µg/ml). BCP contains phytate,
2012). The peels of the food wastes indicate that Na and anthocyanin, ribalinidine, catechin, rutin, epicatechin,
K were of significant concentration. Both minerals have phenol and sapogenin (0.21-56.75 µg/ml) while breadnut
been implicated with several metabolic disorders seed peel contains spartein, phytate, ribalinidine and
especially when the Na to K ratio is high leading to catechin (0.0023-96.68 µg/ml). HBP contains spartein,
incidences of hypertension (Chen et al., 2010). The values anthocyanin, ribalinidine, catechin, kaempferol,
of the mineral contents reported in these food wastes are epicatechin, phenol and sapogenin (0.46-53.28 µg/ml).
comparable to their edible components (Effiong and Rutin appears to have the highest concentration of the
Umoren, 2011; Adeleke and Abiodun, 2010; Yusuf et al., phytocomponents present in all food wastes except for
2006). Therefore, these samples could be considered as BSP where catechin had the highest value.
useful in ruminant feeds.
Table 3. Phytochemical constituents (µg/ml) of pumpkin
seed peel, pumpkin pod peel, breadnut white pulp,
breadnut seed peel and horse eye been peel
Phytochemical PSP PPP BCP BSP HBP
Spartein 0.0025 0.0019 - 0.0023 0.46
Phytate 0.21 0.12 0.21 0.049 -
Anthocyanin 1.05 0.9198 0.86 - 0.94
Tannin 15.11 20.0262 - - -
Lunamarin 3.93 - - - -
Ribalinidine 0.80 - 2.04 0.82 2.26
Catechin 27.49 - 33.98 96.68 17.11
Rutin 51.38 61.2066 56.75 - 53.28
Kaempferol 0.023 - - -
Figure 5: Mineral contents of the Agricultural food wastes Oxalate - 0.0023 - - -
Epicatechin - 5.51 13.04 1.24 13.76
Phytochemical constituents Phenol - - 2.80 - 9.58
Sapogenin - - 3.06 1.20 2.92
The chromatogram from GC-FID analysis (Figures 6-10) (-) = Absent
revealed the following: spartein, phytate, anthocyanin, * PSP (Pumpkin seed peel), PPP (Pumpkin pod peel),
tannin, lunamarin, ribalinidine, catechin, rutin, kaempferol, BCP (Breadnut creamy pulp), BSP (Breadnut seed peel),
oxalate, epicatechin, phenol and sapogenin as some of the HBP (Horse eye bean peel)
Figure 6: Chromatogram showing the phytochemical Figure 7: Chromatogram showing the phytochemical
constituents of PSP constituents of PPP
Figure 8: Chromatogram showing the phytochemical Figure 9: Chromatogram showing the phytochemical
constituents of BCP constituents of BSP
Tetsuya, 2007). Catechin a polyphenol has been shown to
have anti-inflammatory and anti-hepatitis properties
(Dilipkuman and Preeti, 2013). Although tannin decreases
protein quality by reducing digestibility and palatability,
other anti-nutritional effects attributed to tannin include
damage to the intestinal tract, interference with the
absorption of iron and a possible carcinogenic effect
(Onyeka and Nwambekwe, 2007). However, the presence
of tannin is essential for the treatment and prevention of
diarrhoea, dysentery, and leucorrhoea (Etuk et al., 1998).
Saponin has been generally reported to be very useful for
the treatment of hyperglycemia, hypertension,
Figure 10: Chromatogram showing the phytochemical hypercholesterol, maintenance of bone health and helps in
constituents of HBP building up the immune system (Skerman et al., 1998).
Lunamarin and ribalinidine have been reported to have
The bioactive compounds contained in plants are majorly radical scavenging function (Rahmani and Sukari, 2010).
responsible for their medicinal properties (Ighodaro et al., Phytate has been shown to exhibit anti-inflammatory and
2012). These phytochemicals have been reported to exert cholesterol lowering effects (Urbano et al., 2000). The
multiple biological and pharmacological effects which presence of these phytoconstituents in these food wastes
include antibacterial, antihypertensive, antidiabetic and showed that they have therapeutic activity and could be
anti-inflammatory activities (Middleton and Kandaswami, good sources of novel drugs.
1992). Alkaloids (sparteine, ribalinidine and lunamarin)
play some important metabolic role in living organisms,
causing some physiological changes and are involved in CONCLUSION
protective function in animals (Nwiloh et al., 2016). They
have been shown to have important pharmacological The results of proximate analyses indicate that the food
functions such as anticancer, psychedelics and wastes contain carbohydrates, protein, fat, fiber, moisture
antimalarial (Otitoju et al., 2014). The agricultural food and ash. Carbohydrate was the most prevalent nutrient in
wastes are rich in flavonoids, which are the most common all the food wastes. The mineral element analyses showed
polyphenols found in the human diet and which have been that the food wastes are rich in Zn, Fe, Mg, K, Na, Ca and
implicated in many human diseases including lipid- P although their content varied in the food wastes studied.
lowering, hepato-protective, anti-inflammatory, anti- The phytochemical screening of the food wastes indicated
oxidant, antimalarial and antimicrobial activities by acting that they are rich in a number of bioactive compounds. The
as antioxidants (Okwu and Josiah, 2006). Rutin a presence of these nutrients and bioactive substances in
flavonoid has been shown to have anti-ulcer, antibacterial, the food waste peels suggests that the peels possess
antiviral, anti-allergic, and antithrombosis activities. Also, some valuable potential yet to be properly explored.
Anthocyanin, a flavonoid has been shown to decrease
triglycerides and increase HDL-cholesterol level in rats
(Nwiloh et al., 2016). It can also protect pancreatic β-cells CONFLICT OF INTEREST
from glucose-induced oxidative stress due to its
antioxidant property, having anti-diabetic activity (Dilip and The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
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Assessment of the nutritional quality of processed an open-access article distributed under the terms of the
horse eye bean (Mucuna urens) by in vivo rat bioassay. Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits
Journal of Food, Agriculture and Environment, 3:132- unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any
135. medium, provided the original author and source are cited.