Evaluation of the Biochemical and Nutritional Characteristics of 16 Groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) Accessions in the Poro Region of Côte d’Ivoire

Côte d’Ivoire abounds in a wide diversity of groundnut varieties of various origins. Several of them are generally grown without precise knowledge of their biochemical and nutritional characteristics. The aim of this study was therefore to investigate the biochemical and nutritional characteristics of the seeds of 16 groundnut accessions in order to identify those most likely to meet the needs of producers, traders and consumers. The parameters considered were dry matter content, lipid content (L), total sugar content (ST), protein content (P) and energy values (EV) using standardised methods. The results showed significant variability between the accessions evaluated. The moisture content of the samples varied from 4.42% to 11.12%, while the ash content ranged from 2.17% to 3%. The protein, lipid and total carbohydrate contents of the accessions varied from 19.4% to 35.98%, from 29.49% to 53.54% and from 3.71% to 40.49% respectively. Similarly, the energy value varied from 511.29 to 640.62 Kcal/100 g. Hierarchical ascending classification and discriminant factor analysis were used to highlight inter-gene variations between accessions on the basis of these parameters and the quantity of oxalates. The study also showed that six of the 16 accessions (PA1-19, PA1-21, PA8-1, PA12-2, PA12-7, and PA17-2) had better nutritional quality.