PROXIMATE AND PHYTOCHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF AFRICAN

LOCUST BEAN SEED (PARKIA BIGLOBOSA) AND AFRICAN BUSH

MANGO (IRVINGIA GABONENSIS)

OGIE ELLIOT
AST/2102300033

A SEMINAR PAPER PRESENTED

TO THE DEPARTMENT OF FOOD TECHNOLOGY
SCHOOL OF BUSINESS STUDIES,
AUCHI POLYTECHNIC,
AUCHI, EDO STATE.

IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE

REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF
HIGHER NATIONAL DIPLOMA
(HND) IN FOOD TECHNOLOGY

JANUARY, 2025
Abstract
Browse plants is one of the cheapest sources of feed for ruminants and other farm
animals. The leaf of African locust bean (Parkia biglobosa), a tree belonging to the
family leguminoceae was studied. The Locust bean foliage (LBF) was evaluated
for the proximate and antinutritional factors. The proximate analysis showed that
LBF had high crude protein (16.23%), dry matter DM (90.05%), crude fibre CF
(21.36%), low fats (0.68%), ash (6.11) and soluble carbohydrate (55.62%). Anti–
nutrients contents included oxalates (4.02 mg/100g), phytate (0.06 mg/100g),
trypsin (0.44g/100g), saponin (2.80 mg/100g), cyanide(1.60 mg/100g), tannin
(24.15 mg/100g) and alkaloid (6.70 mg/100g). The values obtained for the
proximate composition may be an indication that LBF is a promising browse
plants which could be fed to the grazing animals during the dry season, when fresh
forages are scarce.
Keywords: Parkia biglobosa Afolayan, M., Afolayan, S. B. and Muhammad, M. A.
Locust bean foliage, proximate composition, antinutritional factors,
Introduction

Browse plants is one of the cheapest sources of feed for ruminants and pseudo-

ruminants. Shrubs and tree leaves are important component of diets of grazing

animals and also played a significant role in nutrition of livestock in the tropical

region. The leaves of the evergreen tree and shrubs are used as emergency source

of feed by the ruminants in the semi arid region of Northern Nigeria (Njidda and

Ikhimioya, 2010). They are potential source of fodders throughout the year,

especially during the dry season when grassland and fresh pastures are not

available. Foliage offer a considerable potential as major source of energy, proteins

minerals and vitamins for herbivorous animals (Babayemi and Bamikole, 2006).

Browse species, because of their resistance to heat, drought, salinity, alkalinity,

drifting sand, grazing and repeated cutting, are the major feed resources during the

dry season (Fagg and Stewart, 1994). Some parts of browse species can be found

during the dry season including pods, fruits and leaves. Most trees or shrubs

produce their leaves during wet season, thus browse is more available during the

dry season (Palgrave, 1983). Several indigenous and exotic browse species have

been investigated and evaluated for inclusion in ruminant feeding systems in

Nigeria. African locust bean (Parkia biglobosa) tree belong to the family

Leguminoceae, sub family Mimosoidae and genus Parkia. The Leaves alternate,

dark green, bipinnate to 30 cm long, pinnae up to 17 pairs with 13-60 pairs of

leaflets, 8-30 mm x 1.5-8 mm, of distinctive shape and venation. Leaflets held on a

long rachis. The young seedlings are nutritious and heavily browsed by livestock.

An important attribute of Parkia biglobosa trees is that most of their leaves remain

green throughout the dry season and branches are lopped and used as fodder (Orwa

et al. 2009). Pakia biglobosa are known to contain high amount of essential

nutrient, vitamins, minerals, fatty acid and fibre (Gafar and Itodo, 2011). The seeds

are brown- blackish in colour, tasty seasoning which is rich in protein and are

commonly used as condiment in local soups and as a dietary protein source

(Wokoma and Aziagba, 2001; Achi, 2005; Chukwu et al., 2010). Seeds and bark

contain tannin, and the bark is used in tanning. The pulp is high in energy value

and it contains between 60% - 66% carbohydrates. Afolayan et al. (2014) reported

that the pulp is rich in essential vitamins and minerals and could be a potential

source of energy in livestock ration. The pulp could also serve as natural yolk

colorant in laying hens diets (Afolayan et al., 2015). In other to explore the

economic importance of the famous locust bean tree, this study is therefore aimed

at evaluating the proximate composition and anti nutritional factors present in the

locust bean foliage.

African locust is a multipurpose tree, the seed, pod, coat, fruit pulp and leaves are

edible materials either to humans or livestock. The seeds are usually fermented and

processed into condiment known by the Yorubas as Iru, the Hausas as Dawadawa,
and Sikomu among the Igbo peoples (Omolara and Ibrahim, 2014). The perennial

deciduous tree belongs to the family Leguminosae and subfamily Mimosoideae

with over thirty-one species (Adjanohoun et al., 1989). The tree is usually found in

a wide range of environments all around Africa but is domiciled in the Southern

part of Nigeria. It grows its seeds in a pod with a sweet pulp around the seed. The

pod of P. biglobosa is usually dark brown at maturity of about 30-40 centimetres

and each pod contains about 30 seeds which are embedded in a sweet powdery

yellow pulp, the seeds are usually collected and stored due to the seasonality of the

fruit maturation (Omolara and Ibrahim, 2014). The raw seed which is covered with

a black coat is cooked, fermented and processed into a protein-inexpensive rich

condiment, with high essential amino acids, fatty acids, vitamins and minerals

constituting important medical purposes and economic activities (Alberts et al.,

2014; Vinceti et al., 2018). However, the black parboiled seed coat is usually

discarded and regarded as wastes, thrown into open fields believing it is of no

economic or nutrient value. Interestingly it was observed that goats on free range

usually feast on these discarded seed coats which becomes a pointer to the fact that

it may contain nutrients useful to the animal (Obizoba, 1998) and thus possibly

incorporated into their diets instead of regarding it as waste causing a nuisance to

the environment and on the long run, helping to reduce the high demand placed on

conventional feed materials like wheat offal, rice brain or brewers dry grain and
help in reducing the cost of feeding which usually account for over 70% cost of

production under the intensive system of production (Alqaisi, 2011). Thus, this

study aimed at investigating the nutrient and phytochemical compositions of P.

biglobosa parboiled seed coat and raw pod to provide relevant information on its

utilization and possible incorporation into ruminant or other livestock diets

Materials and methods

Locust bean foliage used for this study was collected from the locust bean trees

around the Livestock Section of the Samaru College of Agriculture, Ahmadu Bello

University, Zaria. The college is located in the Northern Guinea Savannah zone of

Nigeria (11 11'N Latitude, 7 38'E Longitude, 686 meters above sea level).

Collection and preparation of parboiled seed coat and raw pod Samples of seed

pods were gathered from farms where it was left as waste after the seeds inside

were collected. Parboiled seed coats were collected from locust bean processing

centres within the Ikole Local Government area of Ekiti State and air-dried for

three days at room temperature. All dirt were removed by sorting and the samples

were ground into powder to facilitate easy quantification during laboratory

analysis.
Laboratory analysis

Laboratory analysis of the samples was carried out at the Central Laboratory of the

Federal University of Technology, Akure. Ondo state. Proximate analysis was

determined using (AOAC, 2002) method, and the phytochemicals; oxalate, tannin,

and saponin determined using the method of (Mathams and Sutherland, 1992)

while Phytate was analyzed according to (Makkar and Goodchild, 1996).

Data analysis

Data from laboratory analysis were subjected to one-way analysis of variance

(ANOVA) using the general linear model procedure of Statistical Package for

Social Sciences (SPSS) version 25.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Proximate composition of P. biglobosa seed coat and pod Proximate composition

is an important criterion to determine the nutritional values and quality of feed

materials (Qayyum et al., 2012). Presented in Table 1.0 below are the nutrient

composition of Parkia biglobosa parboiled seed coat and raw pod. The Dry Matter

(DM) was highest in the seed coat with a value of 86.58% and 84.75% in the seed

pod, this variation could be attributed to the nature and texture of these two

materials. The DM of feedstuff is one of the significant parameters that influence

voluntary feed intake in animals (Perry et al., 2003). The moisture contents were
below 20% which is desirable as high moisture content supports the growth of

bacteria and mould, reducing the stability, quality of flavor, and shelf life

(Ogunyinka et al., 2016). The Crude Protein (CP) in the seed coat (26.02%) was

thrice that of the pod (8.69%), this was in agreement with the study of Olawuni et

al. (2012). The high content of CP could be attributed to the fact that P. biglobosa

like all other leguminous seeds and their coats contains a high portion of Nitrogen,

Nitrogen been a precursor of crude protein. Moreover, the application of heat

during cooking is believed to have helped in breaking down the protein structure,

hence increasing its composition and availability, this observation was similar to

the report of Ogunyinka et al., (2016). Hence incorporating the seed coat into

livestock diet will play a significant role in the production and maintenance of

body cells, tissues, enzymes, and hormones as well as some fluid required for body

functioning (Hayat et al., 2014). Ether extract, a fraction of the fat in the samples,

was higher in the coat (15.57%) than in the pod (12.13%). High content of fat may

prone the seed coat to rancidity if not properly stored or exposed to air (Ogunyinka

et al., 2016). It is generally known that leguminous seeds contain oil in them, the

proximity of the seed coat to the seed suggests that a reasonable amount of oil is

embedded in the coat. The crude fibre (20.24%) obtained from the seed coat was

similar to the 22.73% reported by Dahouenon – Ahoussi et al (2012). Though

crude fibre does not contribute nutrients or energy unless acted upon by microbes,
it is significant during digestion, encouraging microbial growth and activities, and

colon health. Ash content was also higher in the seed coats (7.73%) more than

double that in the pod (2.49%), this points to the fact that the coat contains

abundant mineral content over the pod, this submission is in line with the

observation of (Iqbal et al., 2012, Ogunyinka et al., 2016).

However, the carbohydrate content was higher in the seed pod (42.65%) than

17.03% recorded for the seed coat, this report supports the findings of (Dwiani et

al., 2014) that P. biglobosa fruit pulp and pod contain more carbohydrates than the

seeds and seed coat. The lower portion of carbohydrates in the coat could be

attributed to the heat it was exposed to during processing, as excess heat tends to

denature many soluble carbohydrates as they are heat-sensitive compounds

(Dwiani et al., 2014). Though proteins and fats also provide energy, carbohydrates

are much cheaper and more easily digested and absorbed as a source of energy

Sample preparation

Leaves were harvested from the locust bean trees. The leaves were air dried at

room temperature for 72 hours. Sub sample of the dried leaves were then taken to

the Biochemical Laboratory of the Department of Animal Science, Ahmadu Bello

University. Zaria and were analyzed for proximate composition and anti nutritional

factors.
Proximate analysis

The proximate analyses were done using the micro kjeldahl method of A.O.A.C.

(1990) for crude protein. For crude fat, the samples were weighed into porous

thimbles, 200ml of petroleum ether poured into a round bottom flask, a soxhlet

extractor fitted into it and placed on the heating mantle for 6 hours. The extracted

oil or fat was concentrated in a vacuum oven and weighed to the nearest 0.1mg.

For ash content, 1.0g of the dried sample was weighed into three crucibles of

known weights. The crucibles with their content were covered and placed in a

muffle furnace and ignited for 24hours at 500 C after which they were cooled in a

desiccator and the crucible weighed with contents. These procedures were repeated

until a constant weight for each crucible was obtained. Crude fibre determination

was done by weighing 2g of the sample into a conical flask and adding 150mL of

1.25% H2SO4. The mixture was boiled gently for 30 minutes while maintaining a

constant volume. The content in the beaker was filtered and the residue rinsed with

hot distilled water until it was acid free. The material was scraped into a flask for

base digestion by adding 200mL of dilute boiling 1.25% NaOH and allowed to boil

gently for 30 minutes while maintaining a constant volume. The mixture was then

filtered, and the filtrate was washed thoroughly with hot distilled water until it was

base free. The residue was rinsed once with 10% HCL and twice with industrial

methylated spirit or ethanol. It was then dried in an oven at 105ºC and weighed
before it was ignited in a furnace at 550ºC for 90 minutes then weighed again. The

loss in weight of crucible and content after ignition was calculated as the crude

fibre content. The carbohydrate content was determined as the difference obtained

after subtracting total organic nitrogen, crude fat, crude fibre, crude protein and ash

content from the totaldry matter. The moisture content was determined by

weighing 2.0g of the powdered sample into 3 empty crucibles of known weight.

After weighing the crucibles with their content, they were placed in an oven, dried

at 105-110ºC for 24 hours, cooled in a desiccator containing silica gel as a drying

agent and weighed. The procedure was repeated until a constant weight was

obtained for each sample.

Determination of antinutritional factors

The presence of antinutritional factors (oxalates, tannin, phytates, saponin, trypsin

inhibitor, cyanide and alkaloids) was detected quantitatively by the standard

methods as described by AOAC (1990).

Table1 shows the proximate composition values of the LBF. It is evidenced from

the result that the LBF might be a promising browse plant and had adequate

nutrients to meet the requirements of the grazing animals. However, the crude

protein (16.23%,) value in the present study was slightly lower than 17.06%

reported by Alalade et al. (2016) but in consonance with the value (16.45%)
reported by Ladipo and Akinfemi (2004), which is relatively higher than 8% crude

protein requirement of ruminant animals (Norton, 2003). Hence, LBF could be a

potential source of protein for the grazing animals. The LBF was high in crude

fibre (21.34%) and slightly higher than the levels (15- 20%) recommended by

Buxton (1996) for ruminant production. The variation may be due to differences in

climate, locations and the analytical procedures used. The value (6.11%) recorded

for ash in this study may indicate that LBF is a potential source of minerals for

grazing animals. This is also in agreement with the findings of Okoli et al. (2001)

who reported that the ash content in most browse plants falls within a range of 3.0

– 9.6%. The carbohydrate (55. 62%) content in LBF is above average and is an

indication that it could supply energy to support the growth and performance of

grazing animals. Generally, the presence of anti-nutritional factors in livestock

diets causes physiological depression and decrease the bio availability of protein

and energy thereby resulting in poor growth and performance. However, most of

the values recorded for antinutrients contained in LBF in this study (Table 2)

seems moderate and may fall within tolerance dose for livestock.

Table1:Proximatecompositionoflocustbeanforage
Nutrients Composition (%)
Dry Matter 90.05
Crude Protein 16.23
Crude Fibre 21.36
Fat 0.68
Ash 6.11
Carbohydrate 55.62

Table2:Antinutritionalfactorspresentinlocustbeanforage
Antinutrients Concentration(mg/100g)
Oxalate 4.02
Phytate 0.06
TrypsinInhibitor 0.44
Saponin 2.80
Cyanide 1.6
Tannin 24.15
Alkaloid 6.70

except for the tannin (24.15mg/100g) which is relatively higher but may not have

toxic effect. Although, doses above tolerance level has the potential of causing fur

loss in rabbits (Bailey et al. 1999) and also react with proteins in taste buds of the

mouth due to its astringents nature. The finding of Knight and Walter (2001) is in

line with the results obtained for oxalates in this study. The author reported that

renal damage due to deposition of calcium oxalates crystals in the renal tubules is

usually not severe enough to cause death, and also <2% of oxalate has been

reported as the safe level in ruminants. The value recorded for cyanide in this study

is lower than the lethal dose (2.4mg/body weight) reported for ruminants. Saponin:

the saponin content of the LBF is relatively lower than the values obtainable in

other common feedstuffs such as lima beans ( 2 4 . 5 0 m g / 1 0 0 g ) a n d m i l l e

t (19.47mg/100g) as reported by Osagie (1998). Ruminants can tolerate high dose

of saponin in their diets, because of its beneficial effects such as defaunation,

which has the potentials of increasing nitrogen utilization of the ruminant and may

lead to an increase in growth, milk, or wool production (Elizerbeth et al. 2005).

Alkaloids: the alkaloids content in LBF (6.70mg/100g) is safe for ruminants and

even pseudo ruminants (rabbits and swine) and lower than the value reported by

Mainka et al. (2007). The authors reported no-observed-effect level (NOEL)

between 0.60 and 4.66 mg/kg in pigs diets.

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Results obtained from the study showed that LBF has high nutritive values and

could be fed to rabbits and ruminant animals. It is high in crude protein (16.23%),

dry matter (90.05%), crude fibre (21.36%) but has low fats (0.68%), ash content of

(6.11) and soluble carbohydrate. The seed coat and pod from P. biglogbosa seeds

can be considered an alternative feed material instead of leaving them to waste

away. The coat could serve as a good source of protein supplements in livestock

diets, especially the ruminants. From the study conducted, the following

recommendations are made: a. further (in-vivo and in-vitro) studies should be

conducted to evaluate the digestibility and growth response of livestock to these

materials b. large quantity of antinutrients in the pod may pose a threat to health if
incorporated without treatment, hence methods like fermentation and chemical

treatment can be deployed to reduce the presence of the antinutrients in the pod.

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