Quality Parameters of Seed Oil of Moringa oleifera Lam. Grown in Gaborone, Botswana

Abstract

This study was conducted to characterise the physicochemical properties of the seed oil of
Moringa oleifera grown in Gaborone, Botswana. The Moringa seeds used for oil extraction
were collected from the backyards of different households in Gaborone city. The cold press
technique was used to extract oil from Moringa seeds. Quality parameters of Moringa seed oil
were compared with a commercial virgin olive oil using the student’s T-test. The Moringa seed
oil had an average refractive index, density, acid value, peroxide value and saponification value
of 1.4675 ± 0.000, 0.9085 ± 0.001(g/cm3), 0.670 ± 0.313 (mg KOH/g), 0.15 ± 0.710 (mEq
O2/kg) and 134.08 ± 7.140 (mg KOH/g), respectively. The Moringa oil had comparable
physicochemical characteristics with virgin olive oil except for refractive index, peroxide value
and colour. The results showed that the values for the physicochemical parameters of M.
oleifera seed oil fall within the recommended limits for edible oils. This suggests that M.
oleifera seed oil grown in Botswana could potentially be used as edible oil for human
consumption.