Assessment of the Nutritional and Antinutritional Components of Tiger nut Residues

Cyperus esculentus is a monocotyledonous plant and belongs to the family cyperaceae which is made up of over 4000 species. Its common names include, tiger nut, Aya, chufa sedge, yellow nut sedge and earth almond. The tubers are edible and are consumed fresh, dried or in roasted form in some countries which include Burkina Faso and Nigeria. In Valencia and Nigeria, the tubers are usually processed into milk. Residues obtained from processing the tubers into milk are often considered wastes and discarded. An investigation into the nutritional and antinutritional components of these residues was carried out. Results of this investigation show that these residues contain high amounts of carbohydrates (43.0 %), fibre (18.4 %), lipids (24.8 %) iron (70.179 ppm), sodium (13.611 ppm), magnesium (10.820 ppm), calcium (10.641 ppm), vitamins C (286.00 mg/L), B 1 (131.50 mg/L), and B 2 (22.49 mg/L). Furthermore, antinutrients which include, cyanogenic glycosides, oxalates, phytates, saponins, alkaloids, and flavonoids are low in these residues. This research has established that tiger nut residues, often regarded as waste materials, contain highly valuable nutrients in substantial quantities that can be harnessed for various applications. These findings pave the way for research on the potential use of tiger nut residues for feed formulation and other applications and consequently, provide a means of converting waste into wealth and cleaning up the environment of this solid waste especially considering the current increase in environmental pollution.