Fatty acid composition and oil yield in fruits of five arecaceae species grown in Cuba

Abstract

The present study targeted the whole-fruit oil yield and fatty acid composition from five of the most abundant Arecaceae species grown in Cuba. The oil yields (% dry weight), determined by the Soxhlet extraction technique with hexane, were 25.5, 5.3, 6.9, 5.4, and 6.4% for Roystonea regia, Colpothrinax wrightii, Sabal maritima, Sabal palmetto and Thrinax radiata, respectively. The free fatty acid (FFA) content varied from 2.7 to 6.8%. Fatty acid (FA) profiles of the oils indicated that lauric acid (13.7-44.4%), myristic acid (9.4-22.4%) and palmitic acid (9.2-17.1%) as major saturated FA; whereas oleic acid (9.6-42.7%) and linoleic acid (9.3-17.0%) as major unsaturated FA. R. regia fruit seemed the most promising among Arecaceae grown in Cuba because of its high oil yield and low oil FFA content. © 2007 AOCS.