Study on Some Macronutrients Composition in Peels of Different Citrus Fruits Grown in NWFP

Abstract

The study was undertaken to evaluate the nutritional significance of four varieties of citrus fruits peel such as sour orange, sweet orange, lemon and grapefruit. The peels were dehydrated, grinded by using hammer mill machine and analyzed comparatively. The selected parameters were total ash, crude fat, crude fiber, crude protein, total sugar, reducing sugar, non-reducing, lignin and pectin ranged from 1.7-7.3 %, 1.2-2.1 %, 5.7-8.6 %, 2.2-4.2 %, 10.2-16.5 %, 12.4-10.2 %, 2.5-4.2 %, 1.3-6.4 % and 4.4-12.8 %, respectively. The quantity of β-carotene and vitamin C determined by spectrophotometer were in the range of 0.13-2.10 µg/g and 42.5-65.0 mg/100g respectively. The overall result showed considerable variation among the peels of citrus fruits for different quality parameters. The varieties were characterized on the basis of nutrient contents. Due to lack of information available on some macronutrients composition of these citrus fruits waste (Peels) and their role in contemporary diet, the assessment was carried out on the basis of nutritional quality.