Composition of Seed Flour of Selected Nigerian Tea (Camellia sinensis) Clones – A Comparative Study

In the present article, six clones of Nigerian Tea (Camellia sinensis) were selected for comparative study. Proximate, phytochemical and functional characterization of the whole Tea seed flour (TSF) was examined. The characteristics of the expressed oil from the seed of the different clones were also carried out. Results shows that oil content ranged between 22.9% (C318) to 28.9% (C228); saponification value are in the range of 182.5 189.2mgKOH/g. DPPH values of the resulting oils were indication of their antioxidant properties with  C318 (39.17%) been the highest. The proximate analysis of TSF from the various clones revealed the presence of ash, crude fibre, protein, moisture which was within recommended limit for edible seed flour. The energy value of TSF from the entire clones were remarkable with C68 (2108.3KJ/100g) having the highest. Mineral analysis also showed that TSF contained predominantly Mg, K, and Zn. C236 gave 163.1mg/100g of Mg while C228 gave 23.6 mg/100g of K and 4.1mg/100g of Zn. The result also showed the presence of phytochemicals (Terpenoids, alkaloids, flavanoids etc) in the seed flour across the selected clones. The water absorption capacity of C228 (83.6%) and oil absorption capacity of C318 (96.6%) were remarkable. There is an indication that TSF from the clones stand better chance for potential industrial applications.