Chemical Composition and Functional Properties of Date Press Cake, an Agro-Industrial Waste

Date press cake is a by-product of date fruit juicing that has remained underutilized in the food industry. This is mostly due to the lack of information and technical knowledge about its chemical composition, nutritional value, health benefits and possible effects on the quality of food products upon inclusion. The main aim of this research was to determine the chemical composition, bioactive compounds and functional properties of date press cake to promote its food applications as an economical and available functional ingredient. The research was carried out on ground date press cake obtained from Shahani dates with two particle sizes of 355 μm (coarse) and 167 μm (fine). On average, Shahani date press cake contained 13.37% moisture, 4.92% fat, 6.35% protein, 11.74% crude fiber and 79.06% carbohydrate. Fructose was the main simple sugar, magnesium was the major mineral, oleic acid was the predominant fatty acid, and phenolic compounds were the main antioxidant. The chemical composition and functional properties of the date press cake were affected by its particle size. The coarse sample had lower fibre, oleic acid, total phenolic and flavonoid content and antioxidant activity than the fine sample. However, the fine sample had higher sugar and fat content and exhibited higher water holding capacity and solubility than the coarse sample.