Dates
Production, Processing, Food, and Medicinal Values
Of the many varieties of date palms, the species Phoenix dactylifera Linn. is cultivated extensively and traded and consumed worldwide. Dates: Production, Processing, Food, and Medicinal Values draws from a broad spectrum of contributors to present a comprehensive survey of this particular species. The book explores a range of essential facets of what many consider to be a wonder plant-from its cultivation to its potential for medicinal purposes. Divided into four parts, the book begins by examining cultural practices and their implications for date quality. The contributors discuss tissue culture studies, farm water management, mechanization approaches in pollination and harvesting operations, and marketing aspects. The second section focuses on postharvest operations such as drying and explores alternatives for methyl bromide fumigation and value-added products. It also reviews biofuel production from by-products and discusses the issue of waste generated from industry. The third part of the book highlights the physical, chemical, and structural characteristics of dates. It reviews fermentative products that use dates as substrate, discusses the fruits as a substitute for added sugar in food, and explores date palm feeding to livestock. The final section discusses the possibilities for nutritional and medicinal use and reviews the use of dates in indigenous medicine. Exploring essential properties and agricultural implications, this volume is a reliable resource for understanding the many aspects of the Phoenix dactylifera Linn.
Contents
Production
An Overview of Date Palm Production; R. Al-Yahyai and A. Manickavasagan
Tissue Culture Studies in Date Palm; S. A. Farooq, R. S. Khan, and T.T. Farook
The Date Palm Genome Project at Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; X. Zhang, J. Tan, M. Yang, Y. Yin, I. S. Al-Mssallem, and J. Yu
Water Management in Date Palm Groves; M. Mumtaz Khan and S. A. Prathapar
Fertilizer Application in Date Palm Cultivation; A. Al-Busaidi
Environmental Concern in Date Palm Production from Atmospheric Trace Metal Contamination; S. H. Al-Rawahy and H. Sulaiman
Salinity Problems and Their Management in Date Palm Production; N. Hussain, S. Al-Rasbi, N. S. Al-Wahaibi, G. A. Rehman Al-Ghanum, and O. El-Sharief Abdalla
Insects in Date Palm Field and Their Management; M. Ali Al-Deeb
Mechanization in Date Palm Pollination; A. Mostaan
Design Concepts for Date-Harvesting Process; H. P. W. Jayasuriya
Dates Marketing; M. Daudi Mbaga
Processing
Drying Characteristics, Rehydration, and Color Changes of Palm Fruits During Storage; K. O. Falade and E. S. Abbo
Solar Tunnel Dryer: A Novel Dryer for Dates; M. A. Basunia and H. H. Handali
Processing of Dates by Dehydration and Microwave Drying; D. G. Rao, T. Hariharan, and S. Feroz
Quality Assessment of Dates by Computer Vision Technology; A. Manickavasagan and R. Al-Yahyai
Nonchemical Methyl Bromide Alternatives in Dates’ Processing Sector; M. A. El Mohandes
Processing of Dates into Value-Added Products; P. Vijayanand and S. G. Kulkarni
Exploring the Possibility of Biofuel Production from By-Products and Wastes Generated from Date Industry; D. Ramesh, S. Karthikeyan, and G. Chinnanchetty
Food
Physical Characteristics and Chemical Composition of Date Palm Fruits; N. Guizani and V. Singh
Sorption and Structural Characteristics of Date Palm Fruit; M. S. Rahman
Fermentative Products Using Dates as a Substrate; N. Sivakumar
Dates: Potential Substitute for Added Sugar in Food; A. Manickavasagan
Use of Date Palm By-Products in Feeding Livestock; O. Mahgoub, I. T. Kadim, and W. Al-Marzooqi
Medicinal Values
Dates: A Fruit from Heaven; M. Qasim and S. A. Naqvi
The Functional Values of Dates; M. Ali Al-Farsi and C. Yong Lee
Nutritional and Medicinal Value of Date Fruit; A. Ali, M. Waly, M. M. Essa, and S. Devarajan
Uses of Date Palm in Ayurveda; M. Shanmugapriya and K. Patwardhan
Dates in Indigenous Medicines of India; E. Sukumar
Antiamyloidogenic Effect of Dates Grown in Oman with Reference to Their Possible Protection against Alzheimer’s Disease; M. Mohamed Essa, G. J. Guillemin, S. Al-Adawi, A. Al-Asmi, R. Vaishnav, N. Ramachandiran, and M. A. Memon
Index
