PEQUI OIL

POPULAR USAGE

The pequi fruit is edible when cooked in salted water, and the oil can be used for culinary purposes. The peel is rich in tannin and used in the preparation of ink and dye.

The local communities apply the pequi oil as an anti-inflammatory and against liver disorders. It contains a high content of vitamin A, which helps to prevent and cure eye disorders. The bark serves as a remedy against athlete’s foot.

To extract the pequi oil in a traditional way, the pulp mass is boiled at low heat (without water) and the mass removed while the oil melts. Three dozen Pequí fruit yields 2,5 liters of oil.

Both pulp and kernel oil, along with the peel, is used in the manufacturing of soap.

ECOLOGY

The pequi tree has a leafy canopy that can reach 12 meters in height. Of all the native fruits of the Cerrado biome, pequi is the most consumed and marketed. Pequi is of great importance for local populations and local economies. Some “collectors” and pequi traders come to get up to 80% of their annual income in the productive chain of the fruit.

The fruits ripen from February to May. A Pequí tree usually does not produce fruit every year. The average tree yields around 350 fruits per year.

Oil can be extracted from the fruit pulp as well as from the kernel. Each fruit weighs around 280g and contains 23% pulp and 6% kernel, with 62% and 54.8% oil content respectively. Using hexane (a chemical solvent) in the extraction process, the pulp yields 45.8% oil and the kernel 42%.

With an annual harvest of approximately 350kg of fruit per tree, it is possible to extract 38.8kg of pulp oil and 8.8kg of kernel oil.

The Pequí wood is slow to decay and therefore used in shipbuilding. Although not an endangered species, its uncontrolled exploitation could lead to the disappearance of trees in some regions.