Fat Content and Fatty Acid Profiles of Shea Tree (Vitellaria paradoxa subspecies nilotica) Ethno-Varieties in Uganda
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Date
2012
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Forests, Trees and Livelihoods
Abstract
Fat content and fatty acid composition are important nutritional properties of shea fruits. Farmers in Uganda report the presence of local shea tree ethno-varieties, but it is necessary to investigate their relative fat content and fatty acid composition to evaluate the economic importance of these ethno-varieties. Near infrared spectrophotometry (NIRS) was used to determine the fat content as well as the fatty acid composition of 44 ethno-varieties. Wet chemistry (soxtec petroleum – ether fat extraction and gas chromatography) methods were used to validate the results from NIRS. Fat content ranged from 43.9% to 58.4% while fatty acid composition was dominated by oleic (47–62%) and stearic acid (25–38%). Other fatty acids present were palmitic, vaccenic, linoleic, linolenic and arachidic acids. There was no significant difference in stearic, palmitic and oleic acid composition between ethno-varieties. However, significant variation of fat content, vaccenic and linoleic acids was observed between some ethno-varieties, perhaps due to locality, climatic and tree-to-tree differences. These findings can be utilized for the selection of ethno-varieties that are suitable for commercial production of shea oil in Uganda.
Description
Keywords
shea tree; Vitellaria paradoxa; nilotica; fatty acids; near infrared spectrophotometry; Teso; West Nile
Citation
Gwali, S., Nakabonge, G., Okullo, J. B. L., Eilu, G., Forestier-Chiron, N., Piombo, G., & Davrieux, F. (2012). Fat content and fatty acid profiles of shea tree (Vitellaria paradoxa subspecies nilotica) ethno-varieties in Uganda. Forests, Trees and Livelihoods, 21(4), 267-278.https://doi.org/10.1080/14728028.2012.755810