Nutritional characterisation of a canistel (pouteria campechiana) nectar

Canistel is a fruit with remarkable nutritional characteristics, yet it remains little known, under-exploited and subject to numerous post-harvest losses in Cameroon. The objective of this work was to formulate nectars based on canistel, to evaluate their organoleptic, nutritional and microbiological qualities. The parameters studied were analysed by standard methods. The results showed that, of the nectars formulated, the one with 50% canistel was the most appreciated. With the exception of trace elements, the nutritional composition of the nectars improved with increasing canistel. Per 100 mL, the crude fibre content of these nectars was significant (0.17±0.003g for B25 and 0.36±0.003g for B50), as were vitamin C (72mg and 176±8.00 mg for B25 and B50 respectively) and carotenoids (0.06 mg for B25 and 3.49 mg for B50). The results of the mineral content indicate that canistel nectar is a good source of macro- and micro-nutrients, with potassium as the predominant element. Antinutrients were traced and the results of the microbiological analysis showed that these nectars were suitable for consumption.