Qualidade de frutos de tucumã da mesorregião sul do Amazonas

Abstract

The Amazon region presents countless native species of the Arecaceae family with economic, technological, nutritional potential, and incomparable flavors and aromas. Among these species, the tucumã (Astrocaryum aculeatum Meyer) stands out. This palm tree occurs spontaneously in areas of natural regeneration, being considered an undomesticated species, where its exploitation is carried out through extractivism. The tucuma has good nutritional values, such as high levels of protein and fiber, total use of all parts of the fruit during exploitation and a high acceptance by consumers in the region, being present in several culinary dishes. Therefore, the objective of this work was to characterize the physical-chemical characteristics of the fruits of different tucuma genotypes (Astrocaryum aculeatum) from the southern region of Amazonas. The fruits were collected in the cities of Humaitá-AM and Lábrea-AM, stored in Kraft paper bags and taken to the laboratory for analysis. Ten genotypes were selected from each city, totaling 20 samples. The parameters were analyzed: Soluble Solids (° Brix), pH, Titratable Acidity and Brix/Titratable Acidity Ratio (SS/AT), in triplicate for each of the samples. The Humaitá-AM genotypes presented an average of Soluble Solids of 8.82° Brix, pH of 5.56, Acidity of 1.55 and SS/AT ratio of 5.79. The genotypes from Labrea-AM presented average values of 9.09° Brix, pH of 5.62, Acidity of 2.16 and SS/AT ratio of 4.83. Among the parameters analyzed, the SS/AT ratio is more significant, since it expresses more cohesively the flavor of the fruits and the balance between sugar and acidity. Therefore, the fruits analyzed in Humaitá-AM can be considered as the best genotypes of this species.