Academia Journal of Biotechnology 3(5): 093-096, November 2015
DOI: 10.15413ajb.2015.0207
ISSN 2315-7747
©2015 Academia Publishing
Research Paper
Proximate and mineral composition of some Nigerian castor (Ricinus communis)
accessions
Accepted 5th October, 2015
ABSTRACT
Onyia, V. N.1*, Offiah, F. U.1, Eze, E. I.1, Ilo,
G. E.2 and Onwubiko, N. C.3
1Department
of Crop Science, University
of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria.
2Department of Agronomy and
Ecological Management, Enugu State
University of Science and Technology,
Enugu.
3Department of Crop Science and
Technology, Federal University of
Technology, Owerri.
*Corresponding author email:
[email protected] , Tel: +2348038453140
Castor (Ricinus communis) seeds were obtained and evaluated at the Department
of Crop Science, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, research laboratory to establish the
pattern of nutritional variability existing among accessions. The accessions were
obtained from different part of the country. These accessions were analyzed
quantitatively to determine the proximate and mineral composition. The results of
the proximate constituents revealed considerable wide range of variation for
protein (26.53 – 37.04%), fat (13.2 – 35.4%), and carbohydrate (23.32 – 41.07%),
while closer variations were observed for fibre (1.42 – 1.68%), ash (2.85 – 3.75%)
and moisture (5.75 – 7.43%). Analysis of mineral composition indicated close
variations in sodium (0.01 – 0.03%), iron (0.84-2.31 mg/100 g), copper (0.34 –
0.49 mg/100 g), potassium (0.10 – 0.17%), magnesium (0.61 – 1.12%) and
calcium (0.12 – 0.26%). The analysis revealed that castor bean seeds sourced from
different locations vary in proximate and mineral composition and can be good
gene pool for breeding programmes.
Key words: Castor seeds, proximate analysis, variability.
INTRODUCTION
A variety of plant foods are constantly consumed in most
developing and under developed countries by both man
and animals with little or no information on their chemical
composition and nutritive value. Some of these plant foods
are consumed because of their sensory attributes without
due consideration to their matched less availabilities of
chemical diversity. Castor is one of the plants, whose use is
on the increase but with under researched nutritional
information. Nutritional quality of foods may be evaluated
by chemical analysis of the food for proximate composition
and mineral contents (Eka, 1998). Information on the
nutrient composition of foods has been, and continues to
be, used for a variety of purposes even in feed production.
Castor seeds are currently used for the production of
feedstuffs.
The plant is widely cultivated in the tropical, sub-tropical
and temperate countries. Under favourable condition it
yields about 20-25 bushels (363-454 kg) of seed per acre
(Hill, 1982; Simpson and Ogarzarly, 1986). This huge yield
is an advantage in using castor seeds as an alternative
source of feedstuff materials.
With the rising cost of conventional feedstuffs resulting
from increased competition between man and farm animals
for orthodox foodstuffs, novel feedstuffs are becoming
increasingly in use today and research into their utilization
are currently gaining priority. In developing countries of
the world, Nigeria inclusive, wide variety of ingredients
have been tested and are being used in feeding livestock
either solely or in combination with others in various feed
formulation. Thus, chemical evaluation and nutritional
assessment of castor oil seeds is being considered in the
present work as a follow up to the quest for cheaper and
available alternative foodstuffs for livestock production.
Chemical evaluation of the seeds of castor grown in Nigeria
could reveal the chemical compositions that may be useful
for feed materials and those that could be improved upon
or eliminated before use since analysis of the castor seeds
grown in other regions of the world have been shown to
Academia Journal of Biotechnology; Onyia et al.
094
Plate 1. The photographs of the ten different castor accessions used for the experiment.
contain toxins.
Hence the need to carry out a study in determining the
proximate and mineral composition of different castor
accessions of Nigeria which is the primary target of this
research as there are little or no report on this subject
matter.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Proximate and Chemical analyses
The experiment to determine the proximate and mineral
composition of castor accessions of some locations in
Nigeria was carried out at the research laboratory of the
Department of Crop Science, Faculty of Agriculture,
University of Nigeria, Nsukka (Lat 6˚c 51˚E, Long 7˚29’N,
Altitude 400 m). The castor accessions shown in Plate 1
were sourced from different part of the country.
The proximate analysis were carried out to determine the
moisture, ash, fat, crude protein, crude fibre and
carbohydrate contents in the seeds while the mineral
composition were carried out to determine the percentage
of the macro and micro elements in the castor oil bean
seeds. These proximate qualities were determined using
Academia Journal of Biotechnology; Onyia et al.
095
Table 1. Results of the proximate analysis of the ten accessions of castor bean seeds.
ACC No
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Fat (%)
18.60
18.40
19.36
20.60
13.20
24.0
17.0
18.80
35.4
23.0
Protein (%)
30.472
26.531
27.407
28.37
37.038
29.946
31.085
33.466
28.633
30.997
Fibre (%)
1.637
1.585
1.626
1.417
1.682
1.660
1.642
1.639
1.677
1.529
Moisture (%)
6.05
7.275
6.897
5.45
5.8
5.8
5.75
6.77
7.425
6.445
Ash (%)
2.85
3.25
3.711
3.25
3.255
3.55
3.45
4.45
3.55
3.75
Carbohydrate (%)
40.391
42.959
40.999
40.913
39.025
35.044
41.073
34.875
23.315
34.279
Table 2. Results of the mineral composition of the ten accessions of castor bean seeds.
ACC No
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Fat (%)
0.0184
0.0184
0.0123
0.0245
0.0245
0.0184
0.0184
0.0184
0.0184
0.1654
Protein (%)
0.1203
0.1729
0.1391
0.1661
0.1225
0.1413
0.1022
0.1692
0.16165
1.116
Fibre (%)
0.857
0.927
0.852
0.93
0.606
0.936
0.96
0.924
1.104
0.24
the standard procedures of Association of Official Analytical
Chemistry (AOAC, 1995) while mineral analysis was carried
out using methods described by Pearson (1976).
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Data on the proximate and mineral compositions of the
castor seed obtained from various localities are shown in
Table 1. The result revealed that the proximate composition
had a considerably wide range for protein (26.53 –
37.04%), fat (13.2 - 35.4%) and carbohydrate (23.32 41.07%) and a closer range for fibre (1.42 - 1.68%), ash
(2.85 - 3.75%) and moisture (5.75 - 7.43%).
It is clear from data in Table 1 that castor seeds are good
sources of energy since they are all very high in total
carbohydrate content (Eka, 1998). They are high in protein
and seem to be a good source of protein man and animal
use. Castor seeds have high content of fat and they are also
low in fibre content. The fat content ranges from 17 to 35%.
They have moderate ash content. It is therefore advisable to
formulate feedstuff made of castor seeds with other foods
that are low in protein (Table 1).
The results presented in Table 2 show the mineral
Moisture (%)
0.17
0.13
0.262
0.14
0.125
0.14
0.12
0.17
0.125
2.1463
Ash (%)
0.842
0.9954
0.9188
3.063
1.521
1.1485
2.297
2.306
1.521
0.372
Carbohydrate (%)
0.398
0.41
0.336
0.356
0.477
0.486
0.42
0.392
0.367
0.0306
composition of castor oil bean seeds from different
locations in Nigeria. The result revealed a close variation in
sodium (0.01 - 0.03%), potassium (0.10 - 0.17%),
magnesium (0.61 - 1.12%) and calcium (0.12 - 0.26%). The
result revealed a close variation in iron (0.84 mg/100 g –
2.31 mg/100 g) and copper (0.34 mg/100 g – 0.49 mg/100
g).
There are some differences in the findings and these may
be attributed at least in part, to the varieties/cultivars and
the locality in which they are grown.
The minerals frequently recorded include calcium,
phosphorous, iron, potassium and sodium. Nutritionally,
mineral elements are of great importance to the body. Some
like calcium, phosphorous and magnesium are important
constituents of bones and teeth. As soluble salts, mineral
elements like sodium, potassium, magnesium and
phosphorus keep to control the composition of body fluids
and cells (Okoh, 1998).
The research show that the castor seeds contain high
values of carbohydrate, crude protein and fat but lower
values for moisture, ash and fibre. The proximate analysis
of the castor seeds showed that high qualities of valuable
nutrients signify the presence of high levels of macro and
micro minerals. The presence of high nutrients suggests
Academia Journal of Biotechnology; Onyia et al.
that castor seeds may serve as useful alternative feedstuffs
for livestock if properly processed since previous works
(Lewis et al., 1977; Gohl, 1981; Okorie et al., 1985;
Devendra, 1988) showed that though castor seed contain
high nutrients, it harbors toxic substances namely ricin,
ricinine, hydrocyanide, allergens and other alkaloids. These
toxicants have limited the use of castor seeds for feeding
purposes for man or animal.
The composition of the castor seeds revealed that the
non-conventional feedstuffs contain sufficient amounts of
these nutrients to meet the nutritional requirements of the
fed animals if the anti-nutrients in the castor seeds that
could inhibit the utilization or availability of mineral are
removed by adequate treatment of the castor seeds.
The results of the proximate analysis and mineral
composition of the castor seeds in this study have
demonstrated that the seeds contain high nutrients with
potentials to meet the nutritional requirements of farm
animals if given proper treatments and supplementation
with the deficient limiting amino acids. With all these
compositions, castor seeds have good potentials for animal
use. It is therefore recommended for clinical trials so as to
ensure its proper use in animal production as feedstuff.
Further research is necessary to obtain further methods
of efficient processing and detoxification to enable full
utilization of the castor seeds as alternative to conventional
feedstuffs should be given consideration.
REFERENCES
AOAC (1995). Association of Official Analytical Chemists. Official
methods of analysis. Red. Washington, D. C.
Devendra C (1988). Non-traditional feed resources in Asia and the
Pacific, Bangkok, Thailand.
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Post-harvest Research Unit Publisher, Benin, Nigeria. pp 1-31.
Gohl B (1981). In: Tropical Feeds. Feed information summaries and
Nutritive values. F.A.O. Rome.
Hill NG (1982). Dorminance and epitastasis as components of
heterosis. Z. Tier Zunchtung. City Press. pp. 212-222.
Lewis WH, Elvin MPF (1977). In; Medical Botany. Plants affecting
man’s health. John Wiley and sons publishers, New York.
Okoh PN (1998). Cereal Grains In: Nutritional Quality of Plant Foods.
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Okorie AU, Anugwa FOI, Anamelechi GC (1985). In: Heat treated castor
oil seed (Ricinuscommunis): A potential livestock protein
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Cite this article as:
Onyia, VN, Offiah FU, Eze EI, Ilo GE, Onwubiko NC (2015).
Proximate and mineral composition of some Nigerian
castor (Ricinus communis) accessions. Acad. J. Biotechnol.
3(5): 093-096.
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