Peach palm (Bactris gasipaes)

Datasheet

Description

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Common names

Peach palm [English]; perzikpalm [Dutch]; palmier pêche, parepon, parépou (French Guyana)[French]; Pfirsichpalme [German]; Barackpálma [Hungarian]; Персиковая пальма [Russian]; contaduro, chantaduro, chontaduro, (Colombia, Ecuador); macana, macanilla, palma piva; peyibaye, pejivalle, pejibaye (Costa Rica, Nicaragua), pijuayo (Peru), pijiguao, macana (Venezuela), tembé, palma de Castilla (Bolivia), pixbae (Panama)[Spanish]; pewa, pewa palm [Trinidad & Tobago]; pupunheira, pupunha [Portuguese (Brazil)]; פופוניה [Hebrew]; 桃椰子 [Chinese]; チョンタドゥーロ [Japanese]

The botanical epithet gasipaes is derived from the vernacular name used in the Magdalena River valley of Colombia (cachipay).

Species

Bactris gasipaes Kunth [Arecaceae]

Synonyms

Bactris ciliata (Ruiz & Pav.) Mart., Bactris insignis (Mart.) Baill., Bactris speciosa (Mart.) H. Karst., Bactris utilis (Oerst.) Benth. & Hook.f. ex Hemsl., Guilelma chontaduro Triana, Guilelma ciliata (Ruiz & Pav.) H. Wendl., Guilelma gasipaes (Kunth) L. H. Bailey, Guilelma insignis Mart., Guilelma speciosa Mart., Guilelma utilis Oerst., Martinezia ciliata Ruiz & Pav.

Related feed(s)

Description

The peach palm (Bactris gasipaes Kunth) is a dual-purpose tropical tree cultivated for its edible nutritious fruit that provides pulp, flour, cooking oil, and oil meal, and for the production of heart-of-palm. It yields many crop residues and by-products: leaves, discarded fruits, seeds, oil cake (resulting from oil extraction), and heart-of-palm rinds. All these by-products and crop residues can be used for animal feeding.

Morphology

Bactris gasipaes is a tree that reaches 6-24 m in height and 12-26 cm in diametre. It is is typically multistemmed (1-13 cylindrical, straight stems) and caespitose, although single-stemmed trees occur. Most peach palms have numerous and sharp thorns, dark in colour and up to 14 cm long on the internodes. Peach palms produce suckers (1-12) arising from basal axilary buds. The suckers are managed for heart-of-palm production. The tree has an adventitious root system that forms a thick mat that may extend 4-5 m around the plant and can go as deep as 2 m in the soil. The stems have 10-30 petiolated, dropping, pinnate leaves, 1.8 to 4 m in length. The leaflets are numerous (up to 400) and may be armed on their midribs and margins. The leaflets are 58-115 cm long, 3-6 cm wide, and linear-lanceolate in shape. Peach palm inflorescences develop in the axil of the leaves. The spathe is 51-126 cm long, 6-18 cm wide, 2-15 mm thick and weighs 1-6 kg. The spathe’s internal surface is cream or light yellow. The peduncle is 10-17 cm long and rarely has spines. The monoecious female flowers develop irregularly among male flowers. Male flowers are cream-light yellow, small (2-6 mm long and 2-6 mm wide). Female flowers are usually yellow, or rarely green, larger than male flowers (3-13 mm long x 4-12 mm wide). The fruits develop on bunches that can be up to 20kg. The fruit is a drupe, usually shiny orange, red or yellow in colour and ovoid in shape, about 2-7 cm long x 2-8 cm wide and weighs 4-186 g. The seed is embedded in a dark endocarp centrally located in the flesh of the fruit (Mora-Urpi et al., 1997).

There are many varieties of Bactris gasipaes. Varieties that are producing fruits are generally thorny. Those whose fruits are for human consumption have a high oil content (10-20%) while those for animal fodder have high protein content (up to 14% in pulp and seeds) (Nogueira et al., 1995). In Brazilian fruit production, varieties with different periods of fruiting are cultivated so that the harvest period can be longer: East Amazonian varieties produce fruit from February to May and varieties from river Solimoes are producing from September to December. The varieties cultivated for heart-of-palm have been selected to be deprived of spines which makes their handling easier and safer (Nogueira et al., 1995).

Uses

Peach palm is cultivated for two main purposes, its pulpy fruit and the inner core of the tree, called heart-of-palm, which is a worldwide delicacy.

Fruit consumption has a long history. Pre-Columbian populations cooked the fruits, or let them ferment for several days before using them for beverage. Alcohol content depended on the duration of fermentation: the stronger beverage was used for ceremonies while the slightly fermented one was a daily drink. The fruits were sometimes smoked for better preservation (Mora-Urpi et al., 1997). Today, the fruit is still widely used in South America (Ugalde et al., 2002; Johnson, 2011). It can be cooked in salted water and consumed directly or made into flour for infant formula and baked goods. Fruits are cooked before consumption to alleviate the effect of trypsin inhibitors detrimental to digestion and of calcium oxalates which have burning effect in the mouth (Mora-Urpi et al., 1997; Nogueira et al., 1995). Peach palm fruits can be extracted for their edible (cooking) oil content (Blanco-Metzler et al., 1992a; Arkcoll et al., 1984). Immature inflorescences can be eaten like the fruits (Ecocrop, 2019).

While heart-of-palm can be obtained from different palm species, Bactris gasipaes is the main source of commercial heart-of-palm and its production is a major agro-industry in producing countries, often to be sold in canned form (Villachica, 1996).

In heart-of-palm plantations, discarded leaf and stem parts may be used as pulp for paper, organic fertilizer and animal fodder. The wood (chonta) was a traditional material used by Amerindians for bows, blowpipes, darts, spears, etc. It was used for tool handles but prone to split. The leaves were used to dye fibres in green colour (Mora-Urpi et al., 1997). The leaves can be used to make baskets (Carvajal et al., 2014). Some varieties of peach palm are also ornamentals (Carvajal et al., 2014).

Due to its multiple uses, the peach palm yields many products and by-products suitable for animal feeding:

Fruits, whole or without the seeds (when the seeds have been removed for oil extraction), fresh, ensiled or dried. The dried and ground fruit or fruit pulp is often called peach palm meal.
Rinds (sheaths) and other fibrous materials resulting from the extraction of heart-of-palm.
Oil cake or meal resulting from the extraction of seed oil (Blanco-Metzler et al., 1992a; Arkcoll et al., 1984).
Seeds can be a valuable feed for animals due to their composition (Zumbado et al., 1984).

Distribution

Bactris gasipaes originated from South America and was domesticated and used as a staple food crop by many pre-Columbian communities in the lowland humid neotropics (Patiño, 1963). In the wild, peach palm is found in disturbed natural ecosystems, principally along river beds and in primary forest gaps. Wild trees are generally scattered or occur at low density in small patches.

Cultivated peach palm is adapted to a wide range of ecological conditions in ecosystems created by humans, such as secondary forest fallows that develop after slash-and-burn agriculture. Peach palm does well in the conditions that prevail in the humid tropics of South America, on deep, fertile, well-drained soils at relatively low altitudes (< 800 m above sea level), with abundant but well-distributed rainfall (2000-5000 mm/year) and average temperatures above 24°C (Mora-Urpi et al., 1997). In Costa Rica, peach palm produces less at altitudes higher than 700 m (Ecocrop, 2019). Peach palm still produces relatively well on poor degraded soils, like highly eroded laterites with 50% aluminium-saturated acid soils that are characteristic of slash-and-burn agriculture, but production decreases in the long term without additional nutrient inputs. Peach palm does not tolerate waterlogged soils and is tolerant of relatively short dry seasons (3-4 months) if soils are not excessively sandy. However, dry seasons significantly reduce growth and yield. While the seeds require some shade for germination, the tree does need full sunlight (Mora-Urpi et al., 1997).

Peach palm is one of the 5 palm species of major economic importance in the world, with betel nut palm (Areca catechu), coconut palm (Cocos nucifera), date palm (Phoenix dactylifera), and African oil palm (Elaeis guineensis) (Johnson, 2011).

Processes

Fruit silage

It is possible to ensile peach palm pulp or the whole fruit with or without urea, poultry litter or calcium oxide (Arroyo et al., 2004). The quality of elephant grass (Pennisetum purpureum) silage can be improved by the addition of 32% peach palm fruit (fresh matter) in the forage (Rojas-Bourrillon et al., 1998).

Heart-of-palm silage

The sheaths surrounding the heart-of-palm could be ensiled without or with urea or calcium oxide. The addition of chemicals could not prevent fermentation losses during the ensiling process and failed at improving silage quality (Schmidt et al., 2010).

Forage management

Establishment

Peach palm can be propagated by seeds or cuttings. Though propagation by seeds is easier and less expensive in terms of workload, it is recommended to use vegetative propagation for heart-of-palm production because this method provides thornless palms and allows to have exactly the same quality along generations as new palm trees are clones (Nogueira et al., 1995). When propagation is done by seeds, the seeds should be preserved at not less than 35% moisture and at temperature higher than 15°C. Once sown, germination occurs within 45-150 days depending on the quality of seeds. Ideal germination temperature is between 25 and 30°C. The seeds can be sown in plastic bags at 2 cm depth and then transplanted when the seedlings are 10 cm high. The young plants are allowed to grow during 6 or 7 months and are transplanted in their final place during the rainy season so that they can develop enough before the next dry season (Nogueira et al., 1995).

Cutting the offshoots (suckers) does not impair plant health. There are two ways to manage peach palm trees depending on the intended production.

Fruit production

If the peach palms are cultivated by small-holders, they can be sown at low density (3-20 plants/ha) in home gardens to make multistrata agroforestry systems (Mora-Urpi et al., 1997). In commercial systems for fruit production, density of 400-500 plants/ha have been recommended. Peach palm starts producing fruits within 3-5 years after plantation and can produce during 50-75 years (Mora-Urpi et al., 1997; Overbeek, 1990). Fruit yields are variable: the highest reported values are within 10-30 t/ha, but average ones are only about 2-3 t/ha. Yields of 50-100 kg per trunk per year are not unusual. It is possible to have 2 fruit harvest/year (Ecocrop, 2019).

Heart-of-palm production

For the production of heart-of-palm, the recommended density is between 3 000 to 20 000 plants/ha (Mora-Urpi et al., 1997). The palms attain harvest size in 18-30 months and can be harvested every (6)-9-15 months by cutting the suckers (Ecocrop, 2019). When then are ready to harvest, it is recommended to cut one stem/tree. In the subsequent cuts, it will be possible to cut 2 stems (suckers)/palm tree (Nogueira et al., 1995). In Brazil, heart-of-palm yield could reach 1200 kg/ha (Nogueira et al., 1995).

The following video provides an example of heart-of-palm plantation, harvest and processing in Costa Rica.

Environmental impact

Sustainable crop, forest reclamation

In Brazil, peach palm planted for heart-of-palm production is a sustainable monoculture. It can be cultivated and harvested in the long term without compromising tree survival. This cultivation is regarded as a valuable solution to replace the almost extinct species Juçara (Euterpe edulis) because of the intensive cuttings which have been done in the Atlantic Forest without replanting (Marañhao, 2012).

Waste production and recycling

During the processing of heart-of-palm, the palm peach stems are derinded and this operation was reported to produce 48% rind residues at the factory. The disposal of residues may be an issue for the environment. Recent work suggests to chop the rinds at the factory to transfom them into natural fertilizer, animal feed, and raw material for the furniture and handicraft industry. In small factories, the sheath can be directly fed to cows (Varella et al., 2021).

Nutritional aspects

Nutritional attributes

Peach palm fruit, whole or pulp (without the seed)

The fresh peach palm fruit or pulp contains about 30-50% dry matter. The peach palm fruit is an energy-rich feed due to its large starch content, in the 60-75% DM range. Its energy content also depends on its oil content, but the latter is extremely variable with reported values ranging from 6% to more than 40% (and from 2 to 60% in some cases, see Arkcoll et al., 1984) depending on the variety and maturity. Peach palm fruit is poor in protein, typically less than 10%. It is also relatively poor in fibre, with a NDF value usually lower than 10% DM for the pulp and somewhat higher for the whole fruit (since it contains the seed).

Heart-of-palm rinds

The byproduct of heart-of-palm production is a fibrous material (NDF > 70% DM) with little protein content. Information about this byproduct is limited and studies have tested it in ensiled form (Oliveira et al., 2010; Schmidt et al., 2010).

Potential constraints

Peach palm fruits have been reported to contain triterpenes, reducing sugars, catechins, nonprotein amino acids, and saponins, but these metabolites did not seem to affect in vitro OM and DM digestibility, which were higher than 80% (Pizzani et al., 2008a).

Trypsin inhibitors have been reported in several parts of the fruit, notably the skin where they reduced trypsin activity by half (Gomez et al., 1998). Experiments with rats and broilers have shown that raw peach palm fruit could have deleterious effect on growth and animal health (Zumbado et al., 1988). This effect was alleviated by peeling and heat-treatment such as cooking, autoclaving, or extrusion (Mora-Urpi et al., 1997; Zumbado et al., 1988).

The fruit pulp was found to contain a lectin specific to sheep erythrocytes, while seeds contained a lectin specific of erythrocites of sheep, humans, rabbits and horses (Gomez et al., 1998). Oxalate-like crystals, which reduce palatability by causing a burning sensation in the mouth, have been frequently found in the exocarp of the fruit and just under it (Arkcoll et al., 1984). The fruit is known for its bitterness, at least when consumed for the first time (Leterme et al., 2005).

Ruminants

Whole fruit

The DM degradability and energy value of whole dried and ground peach palm fruits, assessed in vitro with the gas production method, were found to be 79% and 14.1 MJ/kg MS respectively. Those relatively high values make whole dried fruits suitable as an energy source for ruminant feeding (Pizzani et al., 2008b).

Fruit pulp, dried or ensiled

Several experiments in Brazil have assessed the value for ruminants of the pulp remaining after seed removal, which can be fed either dried or ensiled. These experiments conclude that the use of palm pulp should be limited due to detrimental effects on performance, and that it should be supplemented with protein sources.

Lambs

Dried peach palm pulp could be used to replace maize meal in ram lambs (21 kg) during 87 days. However, all parameters of intake and performance decreased linearly with the increasing of peach palm meal and it was recommended to limit peach palm meal inclusion at 40% replacement of maize meal in lambs diets (Santos et al., 2016).

Goats

Peach palm meal produced after seed extraction of fruits in a heart-of-palm plantation was used as a replacer of maize (0, 10, 40, 60, and 85% DM basis) in the diets of wether goats. Increasing the amount of peach palm meal had deleterious effect on all parameters (intake, digestibility, and growth performance). It was suggested to limit inclusion at 10% maize replacement in kids goats (Pereira et al., 2019a; Pereira et al., 2019b).

Steers

Peach palm pulp silage was assessed in young steers (350 kg) grazing star grass (Cynodon nlemfuensis) and bread grass (Brachiaria brizantha) in order to study rumen parameters and degradability. The addition of pulp silage had no significant effect on rumen parameters like pH, ammonia production, or rate of passage. Increasing the level of peach palm pulp silage in the diet however decreased DM degradability and cell wall degradability of both grasses. It was concluded that the inclusion of peach palm pulp silage would require additional protein sources to be effectively used in ruminants rations (Hio et al., 1996).

Bulls

Young grazing bulls were offered twice a day a supplement of peach palm pulp silage at 1%BW alone or added with 3 g of N /100 g of fermentable carbohydrate from the peach palm provided by urea or poultry litter during 122 days (Arroyo et al., 2004). Supplementing grazing bulls with peach palm pulp only resulted in 0.709 g daily gain while it was over 1 kg when the peach palm pulp silage was added either urea or poutry litter. Carcass weight was increased by 10% in bulls fed peach palm pulp silage and any of the protein supplements (Arroyo et al., 2004).

Heart-of-palm residues

The sheaths (rinds) resulting of the production of heart-of-palm production can be fed fresh or ensiled.

Digestibility

Heart-of-palm silage alone or in combination with a supplement (10% of either cassava, maize grain, or palm kernel cake, or with 1% of urea) was assessed for preservation and in vitro digestibility. Acidity was satisfactory at pH ranging from 3.78 to 3.93. The addition of cassava or maize decreased all types of fibre (NDF, ADF, CB and lignin) and increased in vivo DM digestibility. It was concluded that ensiling heart-of-palm residues with 10% cassava meal improved its quality (Oliveira et al., 2010).

Lambs

Fresh heart-of-palm residues were fed to lambs, either as sole roughage with urea, or as a total mixed ration (TMR) (fresh with concentrate, ensiled and mixed with concentrate, or ensiled and mixed with 15% maize grain and concentrate). Lambs fed with the TMR based on fresh residues showed greater DM intake and average daily gain compared with those fed TMRs based on silage, but this difference was not observed on carcass characteristics. The diet based on fresh roughage with urea could only meet maintenance requirements and resulted in carcass characteristics of low quality (Cabral et al., 2013).

Fruit starch

The DM degradability and energy value of the starch extracted from peach palm fruits, assessed in vitro with the gas production method, were found to be 99% and 16.9 MJ/kg MS respectively. These high values make whole dried fruits suitable as an energy source for ruminant feeding (Pizzani et al., 2008b).

Pigs

Whole fruit, dried

A series of experiments in Venezuela was done to assess the potential of whole dried and ground peach palm fruit (peach palm meal) for growing and finishing pigs. In finishing pigs (67 kg) fed for 35 days diets containing 25% palm peach meal with or without lysine supplementation. Feed intake and feed conversion were not affected by the inclusion of palm peach meal or lysine supplementation. However, the average daily gain of pigs fed palm peach meal supplemented with lysine was lower (by 216 g/d) than that pigs fed the lysine-supplemented control diet. Carcass caracteristics did not vary consistently (Colina-Rivero et al., 2010).

In another experiment with growing and finishing pigs, inclusion of peach palm meal at 16% or 32% decreased triglycerides and cholesterol. In growing pigs, peach palm meal at 32% inclusion increased oleic acid in the blood. Lysine supplementation increased linoleic acid while palmitic acid decreased. Peach palm meal having no deleterious effect on blood lipid parameters suggested that it would have no deleterious effect on meat lipid parameters (Colina et al., 2011). A later experiment confirmed that the inclusion of peach palm meal in growing or fattening pigs diet had no deleterious effects on meat lipids and that the lysine supplementation yielded leaner meat (Jerez-Timaure et al., 2011).

The use of peach palm fruit meal in pig diets decreased trypsin activity after 6 weeks of inclusion in pig diets (Leon et al., 2014).

Whole fruit, fresh

In Ecuador, feeding pigs on fresh peach palm fruit in partial replacement (20% or 30%) of concentrate during 12 weeks did not affect average daily gain but feed conversion ratio improved as feed intake decreased. It was suggested that fresh peach palm fruits could be economically used by small pig producers in Ecuador (Sanchez et al., 2017).

Whole fruit, fermented

Peach palm fruits subjected to solid state fermentation by inoculation with natural yogurt and mxing with wheat chaff and molasses could be included at up to 40% in the diet of growing pigs without deleterious effect on energy and nutrient digestibility (Caicedo et al., 2019).

Poultry

Whole fruit, raw or heat-treated

Whole peach palm fruit can be used as a source of energy in poultry diets, but it can be detrimental to broiler growth to the presence of antinutritional factors. This effect can be alleviated by heating the meal by cooking, autoclaving or extrusion.

Laying hens

In Costa Rica, several experiments have assessed the value of dried peach palm fruit, extruded or not, on female chickens. Peach palm meal extruded at 150-155°C could be fed to pullets as a replacement for maize in isocaloric and isoproteic diets at up to 75% without any effect on feed consumption, weight gain or feed conversion ratio. In adult hens, the same processed meal could replace up to 90% maize grain without affecting intake or egg production. The non-extruded meal could replace 30% maize in the diet with no signicant effect on performance except a lower egg weight. Peach palm meal, extruded or not had a positive effect on yolk colour (Murillo et al., 1991).

Broilers

In Costa Rica, palm peach meal, whole or screened to remove fibrous material, was found to have a metabolizable energy comparable to that of maize grain (Zumbado et al., 1984). However, due to the presence of trypsin inhibitors and other antinutritional factors, feeding broilers with raw peach palm fruit had detrimental effects on performance and caused malnutrition in birds, even when it replaced only 10% of maize grain. Sun-drying did not reduce the effect of the antinutritional factors, as the birds again showed poor performance and in particular a decreased feed intake (Zumbado et al., 1988). In Colombia, broilers fed either a balanced diet or diets containing fish meal and variable proportions of maize grain and sun-dried peach palm meal, all the fish meal-based diets (with or without peach palm meal) resulted in lower weight grain, but the diet containing only fish meal and peach palm meal maize gave better performance than those containing fish meal and maize or fish meal, maize and peach palm meal (Cruz et al., 1989).

Heat treatments such as autoclaving and particularly extrusion alleviated the antinutritional effect, and the processed palm peach meal could replace all sorghum or up to 40% maize (Zumbado et al., 1988). Extrusion at different temperatures was also assessed and the experiment concluded that extrusion temperatures between 100 and 125°C were the most desirable to improve the nutritional value of peach palm meal in broiler diets. The most effective heat treatment consisted however in the sequence of cooking under 2 kg/cm² pressure followed by cooking and drying at 100°C during 170 min. The peach palm meal resulting from this process could be used during 46 days to replace 100% maize meal in broiler diets (Murillo et al., 1992).

Goslings

In Costa Rica, peach palm dried and cooked at 100-110°C was fed to goslings (0-4 weeks) as a replacement for maize (0, 25, 50 and 75% substitution) during 4 weeks. Feed intake and weight gain decreased as the level of substitution increased, but feed conversion ratio and the feed costs/kg of meat were significantly reduced. It was concluded that cooked peach palm meal was a valuable replacer of maize provided that substitution rate remains below 50% (Arroyo et al., 2014).

Fruit peels

In Colombia, peach palm peels, enriched or not with oyster mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus), were included in broiler diets at increasing levels (0, 10% and 20%). Feed intake, weight gain, feed conversion, skin pigmentation and cost benefit ratio of the portions were assessed. Whatever form and level of peach palm peels used, no production parameter of broilers changed except for skin pigmentation which was higher with 20% peach palm peels enriched with fungus. Positive effect in economic terms was observed at this inclusion rate (Campo Gaviria et al., 2017).

Peach palm oil

In Venezuela, peach palm oil could provide 25% of energy in broiler diets. When compared to palm oil (Elaeis guineensis), maize oil and beef tallow, peach palm oil did not affect weight gain, feed efficiency and blood lipid parameters (serum cholesterol (TC), very low density lipoprotein cholesterol and low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDLc)). Broilers fed peach palm oil had a lower (more favourable) LDLc:HDLc ratio than those fed the other diets (Baldizan et al., 2010).

Rabbits

No information seems available in the international literature (March 2021) on the use of any part of peach palm in rabbit feeding. As noted above, the fruits are traditionally consumed by people in South America and can be used whole (including the seeds) to feed pigs, poultry or rats.

Peach palm fruits are included in the diets of big rodents (pacas and agouti) when raised in captivity by Amerindians in Venezuela (Govoni et al., 2005). Peach palm fruits (fresh or dried) may most probably be used in rabbit feeding as a safe high energy feed (16.2 MJ calculated DE/kg DM) with low protein (5.4% DM) and fibre (2.0% crude fibre and 3.9% NDF in DM) (Leterme et al., 2005). For balanced diets, peach palm fruit (assuming a 3% protein content) is deficient in sulphur amino acids, which cover only 85% of rabbits requirements (Lebas 2013; Zumbado et al., 1988).

Fish

Black pacu (Colossoma macropomum) and red pacu (Piaractus brachypomus)

Peach palm meal could be used in black pacu (Colossoma macropomum) fingerlings (32 g) and could fully replace maize meal in a maize (55%)-soybean meal (10%)-fishmeal (29%) based diet containing without altering fish growth rate or fish quality (Mori-Pinedo et al., 1999). In an other experiment, black pacu fingerlings (22 g) and red pacu fingerlings (2.56 g) fed on a soybean meal (40%)-wheat bran (30%)-rice bran (12%) and fishmeal (10%) based diet could be offered peach palm meal so as to completely replace wheat bran without altering weight gain, feed conversion, survival, alternative complement activity, and lysozyme (Lochmann et al., 2009).

Nutritional tables

Tables of chemical composition and nutritional value

Avg: average or predicted value; SD: standard deviation; Min: minimum value; Max: maximum value; Nb: number of values (samples) used