Sustainable use of avocado (Laurus persea) to obtain value-added products in Montes de María in the Department of Bolívar-Colombia

Abstract

In the department of Bolívar, avocado planting is centered in the “Montes de María” region, and it is the main larder for Criollo-Antillano avocado (Laurus persea L) in the country. Avocado consumption in Colombia reaches about 5.2 kg / person-year, ranking among the 10 most important consuming countries worldwide. However, a high percentage of production in the Montes de María is damaged due to the vulnerability of the species to the effects of the weather, lack of production infrastructure that causes delays and deterioration of the fruit and lack of alternatives for recovery, on the other hand, the consumption of its fruit generates about 30% of inedible by-products, corresponding to shells and seeds discarded as waste and are potentially usable. This project sought to obtain oils, chlorophyll, and biochar from the sustainable use of the Criollo-Antillano avocado that is grown in the Montes de María region, by transforming its pulp, peel, and seed, respectively. The results show that the oils that obtained high omega 9 values. In the biochar, the percentage of carbon was moderate considering the literature. The characterization of the biochar by means of infrared analysis showed the presence of amines, alcohols, alkanes, alkenes, and aromatic compounds. For chlorophyll, bands related to carotenes and chlorophyll A were obtained. The residues of this variety of avocado are considered a promising resource in the future, considering its transformation and possible application in daily life.