Nutritional Profile of the Ethiopian Oilseed Crop Noug (Guizotia abyssinica Cass.): Opportunities for Its Improvement as a Source for Human Nutrition

The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential of noug as a source for human nutrition. Diverse noug genotypes were evaluated for their content and/or composition of total lipids, fatty acids, proteins, and minerals using standard methods. The total lipid content (32.5–45.7%) and the proportion of an essential fatty acid, linoleic acid (72.2–77.8%), were high in noug, compared to other oilseed crops. The proportion of oleic acid, a monounsaturated fatty acid, was low in noug (5.2–9.2%). The breeding objective of increasing the oleic acid level in the highland, where noug is mainly cultivated, was limited, as the content of this acid was low in this environment. The seed protein concentration (25.4–27.5%) and mineral content were mainly affected by the cultivation environment, as the high temperature increased the amount of protein, whereas the soil condition was a major factor in the variation of the mineral content. Thus, noug is a unique crop with a high seed oil content, of which a high proportion is linoleic acid. With the exception of the seed oleic acid content, when grown in low-altitude areas, the genotypic variation contributes less than the cultivation environment to the nutritional attributes of noug. Hence, high-oleic-acid noug for lowland production can be targeted as a breeding goal.