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Gen info
Canarium ovatum belongs
to the family Burseraceae with 75 known genera and about 550 species.
In the Philippines the family is represented by five genera, namely
Canarium, Dacryodes, Garuga, Protium and Santiria.
Of the canarium species, there
are 75 known and nine of which are found in the Philippines, with
at least four of econimic importance: C. ovatum (Pili), C. indicum,
C. album, and C. luzonicum (Sahing,Manila
elemi).
A municipality in the province
of Camarines Sur is named Pili, after the popular nut-producing tree.
 Botany
Pili is an errect and spreading
tree, deciduous, predominantly dioecious, medium-sized to large, reaching
up to 30 meters or more, with trunk diameters of 50 centimeters or more. Leaves
have deltoid to lingulate stipules, spirally arranged, imparipinnate,
about 40 centimeters long. Leaflets are ovate to elliptic, 4-24 centimeters long and
2-12 centimeters wide, stiff-coriaceous, entire, base oblique, rounded to subcordate,
apex acuminate with 8-12 pairs of nerves. Flowers are borne on cymose
inflorescences at the leaf axils of young shoots. The fruit or nut,
botanically a drupe, ovoid to ellipsoid, 4-7 centimeters long, 2.3 to 3.8 centimeters wide.
Pulp has a thin skin, smooth and shiney, turning from light green
to black when ripened. Shell is carpellary, elongated and trigonous,
nearly triangular in transverse sections, with a basal pointed end,
and a blunt and obtuse apical end, dirty brown outside, shiny and
glabrous inside. Inside the shell is the functional locule containing
the mature seed.
Distribution
- Grown in many areas of the Old World as ornamental, in Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines.
- Only the Philippines processes the pii nuts commercially. Its center of diversity is the Bicol region where
it is the priority crop. The trees have spread to the provinces of
Catanduanes, Masbate and the southern Quezon area.
Constituents
Pili pulp, 64% of the
fruit by weight, contains 73% moisture. On dry weight, 8% protein,
33.6% fat, 3.4% crude fiber, 9.2 % ash, 45*% carbohydrate. Pulp oil,
greenish yellow in color, is 56.7% oleicglycerides, 13.5% linoleic
glycerides and 29.3% saturated fatty acids. The kernel, which weighs
0.74-5.13 g and which comprises 4.4-16.6% of the whole fruit by weight,
contains: 35.6-51.4% moisture, 11.5-15.7% protein, 69.2-76.6% fats
and 2.59-4.32% carbohydrates. Its mineral and vitamin contents (per
100 g): 119 mg calcium, 508 mg phosphorus, 2.6 mg iron, 489 mg potassium,
45 IU vitamin A, 0.95 mg thiamine, 0.12 mg riboflavin, 0.4 mg niacin
and traces of vitamin C (Intengan et al. 1968). Kernel oil is composed
of oleic glycerides, 58.6% and palmitic acids, 38.2%; yellow with
an agreeable odor and taste, suitable for culinary purposes and keeps
perfectly for as long as 6 months (West and Balce 1923).
Parts used
and preparation
Seed kernel.
Oleoresin (mixture of oil and resin).
Uses
Culinary
- Young shoots are edible,
used for cooking and making green salads.
- Pili nut kernel is edible, crispy and delicious.
- Pili "turron" is made from a mixture of ground pili kernel,
sweet potato and sugar, seasoned with sesame and vanilla, mixed and
cooked to desired consistency, cooked, and cut.
- Pili pudding is made from mashed sweet potato, ground pili kernel,
condensed milk, butter, sugar and eggs, vanilla seasoning, then baked
to a light brown color.
- Kernel seeds are roasted and eaten as nuts. Roasted and sugar-coated, usee as
ingredient to cakes, puddings and creams, or preserved in syrup. Roasted kernel sometimes used in chocolate-making.
- Green pulp can be pickled, best after the shell has hardened but before
the pulp becomes too fibrous.
- Boiled ripe pulp is edible, best with salt, pepper and fish sauce.
- In Sorsogon, the nut concoction is called "nilanta"—boiled
in hot water to soften, seasoned with soy sauce, bagoong, and sili.
Folkloric
- Laxative: Eat seed kernel
as tolerated.
- Emuslion from crushed kernels has been used as substitute for infant's
milk.
- Used for making medicinal ointments.
Others
- Excellent border and
shade tree.
- Its resistance to strong winds providing windbreak for other crops.
- Resin-rich wood makes it excellent firewood.
- Wood used for house framing, muscial instruments and box-making.
- Oil from the pulp has been used for manufacture of soap and other
products.
- The hard stony shell makes for excellent fuel and used as growing
medium for orchids and anthuriums. (Coronel 1983)
- Candles also a pili product.
Studies
• Biodiesel: Preliminary
Evaluation of Biodiesel from Canarium ovatum (Pili) Pulp Oil and Psophocarpus
tetragonolobus (Winged bean) Seed Oil – The resulting FAME (fatty acid methyl ester) was found to comply with biodiesel standards and presents a potential source and alternative to explore for commercial exploitation.
• Protein: Physiochemical characterization showed that the salt-soluble globulin was the main storage protein within the pili kernel, possessing physiochemical properties similar to other oil seed globulins.
• Antimutagenic Potential: Philippine plants were studied for their ability to inhibit chromosomal damage induced by tetracycline in the in vivo micronucleus test. The methanolic extract of Canarium ovatum showed the most promising activity by reduing the number of micronucleated polychromatic erythrocytes by >50%. Study established its antimutagenic activity and identified F4B, the most active sub-fraction in the hexane portion. The F4B may be valuable in cancer chemoprevention.
• Biodiesel (FAME) Potential: Prelimiary studies conducted on biodiesel derived from two novel sources of oil - the fruit pulp of Canarium ovatum (pili) and the seed of Psophocarpus tetradonolobus (winged bean) showed that accepatable FAME (fatty acid methyl esters) may be obtained from these two new potential sources of feedstocks.
Availability
Small or large scale
commercial production.
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