Nutritional and Biochemical Characterization of Date Palm Varieties Growing in Palestine

Abstract

The date palm possesses substantial social and economic value because of its financial, nutrient, natural, cultural, medical, and religious aspects. It plays an important role in ensuring food availability in the Middle East and North Africa region by giving people nourishing foodstuffs. In Palestine, date palm growth and production have significantly increased subsequently. The objective of this study is to describe the biochemical and dietary composition of Palestinian date fruits. We examined the approximate biochemical profile of the fruit at full maturity for 34 diverse date plant genotypes from Jericho, Palestine. The results showed significant differences between genotypes for most studied biochemical parameters. The element analysis revealed that date palm extract contains several essential elements, such as calcium, potassium, and iron, the contents were 1636 mg, 1.5 mg, and 4.9 mg for 100 g of dry mass respectively. Ash and fiber substances were 2.92 g and 4.01g respectively. Moisture, acidity, and total solid contents were 24.78%, 0.23%, and 59.34% respectively.