December 2014

Nutritive composition of omega-3 fatty acids-rich Ricinodendron heudelotii and its potential for nutrition

Njangsa (Ricinodendron heudelotii), a tropical tree that grows in the forest of West and Central Africa, produces fruits that are manually shelled to collect oil seeds and dried. A compositional analysis of njangsa revealed a unique nutrient presence of long chain omega-3 fatty acids not usually associated with plant materials. The seed had 31.4% crude protein and 44.7% lipid. Of this lipid, about 73% was composed of...

Author(s): Michael O. Ezekwe, Samuel A. Besong and Ramon Johnson