Waste-to-wealth; nutritional potential of five selected fruit peels and their health benefits: A review

Waste-to-wealth is a notion describing the process of transforming waste, an end product to get rid of, into potential value-added products. The total global food waste is predicted to be approximately one third of the edible parts of food manufactured for human consumption, amounting to about 1 - 3 billion tonnes per year, which is equivalent to the total food production in sub-Saharan Africa; 842 million people in the world do not have enough food to eat. Food waste creates severe environmental and public health consequences that have a negative impact upon human well-being and their environments. This review sought to examine the nutritional, health benefits and potential of orange ( Citrus sinensis ), papaya ( Carica papaya ), pineapple ( Ananas comosus ), watermelon ( Citrullus lanatus ) and banana ( Musa sapientum ) peels termed waste to be valorized to nutrient-rich products needed in food and pharmaceutical industries. The nutritional profile (gkg -1 ) dry weight revealed that the crude protein ranged from “[watermelon 0.55 - papaya 18.96]” and crude fiber “[watermelon 0.21 - pineapple 42.22]”. The mineral analysis (mg/kg -1 ) comprised Ca “[pineapple 8.30 - orange 162.03]”; Fe “[banana 15.15 - watermelon 45.58]”; and Zn “[banana 0.033 - orange 14.04]”. All the peels had good antioxidant potential. Glycemic index ranged from “[pineapple 19 - orange 32]”; and estimated glycemic load “[Watermelon 1.93 - Orange 27.51]”. Fruit peels waste can be minimized by creating public awareness on valorization of peels.