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Uses and commercial prospects for the wine palm, Attalea butyracea, in Colombia

Bernal, R; Galeano, G; García, N; Olivares, IL; Cocomá, C; (2010) Uses and commercial prospects for the wine palm, Attalea butyracea, in Colombia. Ethnobotany Research and Applications , 8 pp. 255-268. 10.17348/era.8.0.255-268. Green open access

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Abstract

Attalea butyracea (Mutis ex L.f.) Wess. Boer is a massive and abundant palm that grows in dry areas of northern, central and eastern Colombia, where it ranks as one of the most useful plants. Thirty-six uses in eight use categories are recorded for this species in Colombia, including food, animal feed, medicine, construction, and technological and cultural uses. Most uses have only minor, local relevance, but some of them have potential that is worth exploring. The potential of the palm as a source of sugar, oil, palm heart, fiber, animal feed, and activated charcoal is discussed. Sugar production seems particularly promising; if the palm can be tapped through the inflorescence in the same way that other palms are tapped in Asia, sugar production in an integrated agrosilvopastoral system could be comparable to that of sugarcane planted for jaggery production. We suggest that this palm also has potential as a source of biofuel. Resumen Attalea butyracea (Mutis ex L.f.) Wess. Boer es una palma corpulenta, abundante en zonas secas del norte, centro y oriente de Colombia, donde llega a ser una de las plantas más útiles. Registramos treinta y seis usos en ocho categorías de uso para esta especie en Colombia, incluyendo alimento humano y animal, medicina, construcción, y usos tecnológicos y culturales. La mayoría de los usos tienen sólo importancia menor y local, pero algunos tiene potencial que vale la pena explorar. Discutimos el potencial de la palma como fuente de azúcar, aceite, palmito, fibra, alimento animal y carbón activado. La producción de azúcar parece particularmente prometedora; si se pudiera sangrar la palma por las inflorescencias como se hace con otras palmas en Asia, la producción de azúcar en un sistema agrosilvopastoril integrado sería comparable a la de la caña de azúcar que se planta para panela. Sugerimos que esta palma también tiene potencial como fuente de biocombustible.

Type: Article
Title: Uses and commercial prospects for the wine palm, Attalea butyracea, in Colombia
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.17348/era.8.0.255-268
Publisher version: http://doi.org/10.17348/era.8.0.255-268
Language: English
Additional information: This version is the version of record. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions.
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences > Div of Biosciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences > Div of Biosciences > Genetics, Evolution and Environment
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10077228
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