Abstract
Sweet potatoes (SPs) are considered by the FAO as a primary crop for “traditional agriculture” in the tropics, but in Europe, its consumption is not widespread. However, consumer demand has grown exponentially over the past five years. This study has evaluated the quality and nutrient contents of storage roots of 29 SPs accessions to characterize their role in improving the human diet. Roots were analyzed for nutraceuticals, sugars, and minerals. Results underlined a considerable variability of nutrient content related to color among SPs accessions. The deep-orange-fleshed SPs showed a higher content of β-carotene compared to the light orange- and cream-fleshed ones; 100 g of edible product of HON86 can supply 32.3% of the daily value contribution of vitamin A, followed by the pale orange-fleshed BRA32 and BRA54. The total phenolic content of the purple ecotypes was about two to five times higher than the other genotypes. The calcium content was generally low, whereas, in many accessions, magnesium and phosphorus content reached 20%, or higher of the contribution to the daily value. Such a high variability suggests different use of the different accessions according to their strengths, but might also be used for breeding to improve quality traits of the commercial varieties.
Highlights
On the basis of the aforementioned premises, the purpose of the present study was to evaluate the content of nutritional and nutraceutical compounds in roots of 29 accessions of sweet potatoes (SPs) deriving from different countries, Italy included, some of which were cultivated for the first time in Europe
31.5 bcd Within each parameter, values without common letters significantly differed at p < 0.05 according to Tukey’s
The percentage of starch in SP accessions ranged from 52.3% of Hon86 to 91.3% of
Summary
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. The sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas Lam.) is a tropical herbaceous plant cultivated worldwide that plays a significant role in human and animal nutrition, as well as being a source of starch for the food industry, only in tropical countries [1]. According to the FAO, in a tropical climate sweet potatoes (SPs) are considered a primary crop for “traditional agriculture” and is widely consumed, in particular in Asian and African countries [2]. The worldwide production of SP reached 91.8 × 107 tons in 2019 and is the seventh most cultivated food crop in the world [3]
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