# A New Food Source: Analyzing the Nutritional Value of Plant Ferulago trachycarpa Boiss

## TL;DR

This study analyzes the nutritional value of Ferulago trachycarpa, a wild plant, and finds it rich in minerals and energy, suggesting potential as a functional food.

## Contribution

The study provides the first detailed nutritional profile of Ferulago trachycarpa, highlighting its potential for commercial cultivation as a functional food.

## Key findings

- Ferulago trachycarpa contains high levels of calcium, potassium, and iron.
- The plant has a significant energy value and low fat content, making it suitable as a leafy vegetable.
- Total ash content indicates a rich mineral composition.

## Abstract

The Umbelliferae family, consisting of annual or perennial herbs and rarely shrubs, takes up a place in our country's flora with 97 genera, and the Ferulago genus is represented by 28 species. Ferulago trachycarpa is a wild species traditionally used in human nutrition due to its sedative, digestive, carminative, and aphrodisiac properties. The purpose of this study was to determine the nutritional value of a plant sampled in Antalya Province, Alanya District, Gökbel Plateau during the pre‐flowering period. The microelement, energy, carbohydrate, fat, total ash, water, and crude cellulose values were investigated. Evaluating the results, the energy value for a 100‐g fresh sample was 73.51 kcal, the water content was 68.35%, the ash amount was 6.79%, the protein amount was 2.59%, the fat amount was 0.71%, the carbohydrate amount was 14.19%, and the fiber amount was 7.37%. When looking at the contents of the microelements, iron was detected at 1.85 mg/100 g, phosphorus at 28.69 mg/100 g, calcium at 2031.96 mg/100 g, magnesium at 68.57 mg/100 g, and potassium at 140.06 mg/100 g, but sodium and zinc were not detected. The amount of total ash suggests a mineral composition comprising potassium, calcium, and iron as the main elements. The present study inferred that Ferulago trachycarpa would serve as a beneficial source of protein and energy, as well as micronutrients in the form of a leafy vegetable for human consumption. Therefore, agricultural domestication for the commercial production of the Ferulago trachycarpa species needs to be investigated to serve commercial production as a functional food.

Ferulago trachycarpa, the subject of this study, is one of the many plants found in our country's flora and used in nutrition. It is an important part of both human and animal nutrition, especially in areas where food resources are limited, as it spreads in habitats above 1000 m. This study aimed to determine and introduce the nutritional value of the species, which has many ethnobotanical uses, and the results obtained showed that the species is rich in calcium, potassium, iron, and total ash.

A figure of Ferulago trachycarpa in its natural habitat.