Peach palm - World Agroforestry Centre

2 4 Peach palm. Bactris gasipaes Kunth
extracting the oil, the remaining meal could be commercialized as an animal food
supplement (Arkcoll and Aguiar 1984). The protein, oil and fibre contents of the
seed are also appropriate for use as an animal food supplement (Zumbado and
Murillo 1984). Like other palms, the seed is rich in saturated fatty acids, and could
be used to manufacture cosmetics and soap.
Heart-of-palm is developing into an important commercial crop, especially for the
gourmet market (Villachica 1996). Fresh, dried and canned hearts-of-palm are being
marketed for preparation of salads, soups, roasted chips and fillings. It is a good
source of dietary fibre, and a moderate source of magnesium and iron (Table 5).
Table 5.Chemical composition and mineral content of heart-of-palm reported from
different sources
5a. Chemical composition (% of fresh weight)
Source Moisture Protein Oil Carbohydrate Fibre Ash
Brazil
Ferreira and
Pashoalino 1988 88.4 2.3 2.2 4.0 1.1 1.2
Peru
D’Arrigo 1993 91.4 2.9 0.6 3.0 1.0 0.9
Costa Rica
Asunción 1991 90.5 2.3 0.1 2.7 0.9 0.9
Average 90.1 2.5 1.0 3.2 1.0 1.0
5b. Mineral content (mg/100 g dry weight)
Source Ca Fe Mg P K Na Zn
Brazil
Ferreira and
Pashoalino 1988 114.0 4.3 80.0 94.0 337.6 1.3 0.8
4.3 Minor products
Native Amerindians used several other parts of peach palm (Patiño 1958; Clement
1988). The stem provided durable material for bows, arrows, fishing poles,
harpoons, carvings, and flooring and paneling in their houses. The Ticuna people
of the upper Solimões River in Brazil also extract a green dye from the leaves for
colouring other fibres (C.R. Clement, 1996, pers. observ.). The long spines were