Comparative Valorization of Garcinia gummi-gutta and Garcinia indica Seeds: Influence of Solvent Type and Accession on Butter Extraction Efficiency

Abstract

The sustainable utilization of agro-industrial waste has gained increasing importance for generating value-added products while addressing environmental and economic concerns. Discarded seeds of Garcinia gummi-gutta and Garcinia indica, produced during fruit processing, represent an underutilized resource with potential as an alternative source of seed butter. The present study evaluated butter extraction efficiency from seeds of these two Garcinia species using acetone, petroleum ether and petroleum benzene through Soxhlet extraction and assessed variation among selected accessions. Significant variation in butter recovery was observed among cambodge accessions, whereas kokum accessions showed relatively uniform performance across solvents. Species-wise comparison revealed that kokum seeds yielded significantly higher butter recovery than cambodge seeds across all solvents, with acetone producing the highest butter yield in both species, while petroleum ether and petroleum benzene yielded butter of superior colour and acceptability. Butter recovery ranged from 43.26 to 47.19 per cent in cambodge and 48.88 to 50.67 per cent in kokum using acetone, with comparatively lower but acceptable recovery using petroleum ether and petroleum benzene. The consistently higher butter recovery observed in kokum seeds corroborates earlier findings and highlights its superior oil-bearing potential. Overall, the study demonstrates the influence of solvent type and genetic variability on butter extraction efficiency and supports the valorization of discarded Garcinia seeds into economically valuable butter for food and allied industrial applications.