Extraction and characterization of essential oils from synthesized food spice (Lippia multiflora, ginger & turmeric)

Spices are used globally, and are of great importance in indigenous culinary and traditional medicine applications, they are the product of dried fruits, seed root, bark or vegetative substances. This study synthesized food spice from Lippia multiflora, ginger and turmeric. Some anti-nutritional factors and the chemical composition of the extracted essential oils were evaluated. The chemical composition of the extracted essential oils revealed the presence of over ten (10) compounds, with 2-Pyrrolidinone, 1 methyl (35.21 %), Cyclo-hexane-carboxylic acid (24.00 %), Diethyl Phthalate (15.46 %) and 2-Pyrimidinamine,4,6-dimethyl (5.60 %) being the predominant compounds in the oil. The phytochemical screening of the food spice indicated the respective phytate, oxalate and tannin values for the food spice as; 0.71 mg/100 g, 1.2 mg/100 g and 0.51 mg/100 g respectively. These results are in agreement with previous studies where essential oils were shown to contain complex mixtures of compounds with varying chemical compositions.