Effect of Processing on the Anti-Nutrients in Thevetia Peruviana Seed

The growing population of the world places a heavy demand on agricultural sector to boost its production of foods for people. By the United Nation report of 2013, there are about 7.2 billion people on earth, the number expected to increase by almost one billion people in the next twelve years amounting to about 8.1 billion in 2025 and 9.6 billion in 2050. This population growth set foods, not only limited but also very expensive because of the competing needs. This book therefore set to present an alternative food source of plant origin that is cheap, readily available and affordable especially for the developing countries. This plants source is Thevetia peruviana. Currently, there is no reported human dietary or commercial demand for this plant. This makes it a very cheap potential source of food compared to other conventional protein concentrates like peanut and soybean. Studies have shown that the nutritional values of Thevetia peruviana seed meal are comparable to that of soybean and peanut meals. However, this plant is rarely used due to its toxicity. This work determines the effect of processing on the anti-nutrients in Thevetia peruviana seed.

Mohammed Sani Abdulsalami, PhD: Studied Biochemistry at University of Ilorin and Usmanu Danfodiyo University Sokoto, Nigeria. An Associate Professor and Head of Department of the Biological Sciences, Faculty of Sciences at the prestigious Nigerian Defence Academy, Kaduna, Nigeria. Research interest: Nutrition, Toxicology and Biotechnology.