Comparison among Five Varieties of Date Fruit and Their Nutritional Value at Different Ripening Stages

This research was carried out to investigate the number of changes in chemical compounds during different stages of fruit ripening and comparison between cultivars.Fruits were harvested at different stages (Hobabok, Kimri, Khalal, Rutab and Tamar) of ripening in five date varieties(“Khenizi”, “Mazafati”, “Kaloteh”, “Shahani’ and “Mordasang”) and then traits including phenolic compounds, anthocyanin, tannin, moisture and total soluble solids (TSS) were measured.The results of the comparison of the average TSS showed that the amount of TSS, anthocyanin and phenol compounds were increased during the ripening stage of the date fruit. The results showed that the amount of antioxidant capacity, tannin, flavonoids and percentage of moisture decreased during the ripening phase of the fruit. In general, during the ripening process of date fruits, the amount of chemical compounds in the cultivars is different, and according to the purpose of harvesting the fruits, the harvesting stage takes place.

Keywords:

Date palm , Health , ripening , Human nutrition , Palm diversity