Yield and composition of carob bean gum produced from different Moroccan populations of carob (Ceratonia siliqua L.)

The carob product most widely used, especially for the food industry, is the carob bean gum (CBG), or locust bean gum (LBG). This gum comes from the endosperm of the seed and chemically is a polysaccharide, a galactomannan. It is used as thickener, stabilizer, emulsifier and gelling agent. This study was carried out to determine and to compare the characteristics of LBG in terms of yield, moisture and ash content and protein content. Samples were collected from different regions in the agro-forestry system of Morocco. The results showed that the Moroccan cultivars are characterized by a high yield of seeds that provide a high yield of endosperm. The purified CBG from different population of Moroccan carob tree had 60.63–72.49% yield, 6.36–8.63% moisture, 0.36–0.99% ash and 0.52–0.62% protein. The protein, moisture and ash, and the yields of purified locust bean gum are comparable to those reported in the literature from other countries