Abstract
The aim of this study was to evaluate biochemical variability and nutritive value of crude and purified locust bean gum among twelve Tunisian carob populations belonging to different sites, rheological behaviour of the purified and crude bean gum also assessed. The average crude locust bean gum populations were 80.3 g kg-1 moisture, 0.27 g kg-1 ash, 1.72 g kg-1 protein, 1.05 g kg-1 acid-insoluble matter, 6.02 pH, 3.5 NDF, 0.99 ADF, 1.68 g kg-1 phenols, and 4.02 mannose/galactose ratio. The best rheological properties were noted for populations from Sliman, Ain Essobh, Khnis and Sayada. There were significant differences in composition of carob kernels and gum among populations. Our results contribute significant insights into biochemical and physical variability on carob trees at regional scale and shed light on the potential for using carob populations to select promising genotypes that are adapted to local conditions and have high industrial, medicinal and agronomical performances.