Banana inflorescence, the male floral part of the banana plant (Musa spp.), is commonly discarded during fruit development despite its significant nutritional and phytochemical potential. The present study evaluates and compares the nutritional, mineral and polyphenolic composition of dried banana inflorescence powder obtained from four cultivars, namely Grande Nain, Gandevi Selection, Kanchi Kela and Saba. Significant cultivar-dependent variations (p<0.05) were observed for most of the evaluated parameters. Among the cultivars, Grande Nain exhibited the highest crude fat (5.41 %), ash (4.10 %), total dietary fibre (27.91 %) and carbohydrate content (18.18 %), whereas Kanchi Kela recorded the highest crude protein content (14.05 %). The moisture content of the dried powders ranged from 8.89 % to 9.17 %, with no significant differences among cultivars, indicating effective dehydration before analysis. Potassium was the predominant macronutrient in all cultivars, followed by phosphorus and calcium, while iron was the dominant micronutrient, surpassing manganese, zinc and copper. Polyphenolic profiling revealed that the Gandevi Selection cultivar contained significantly higher levels of extractable polyphenols (4.38 %), hydrolysable polyphenols (0.93 %) and non-extractable proanthocyanidins (7.18 %) compared to the other cultivars. The observed compositional variability highlights the influence of genetic factors on the nutritional and bioactive profile of banana inflorescences. Overall, the findings demonstrate that banana flowers, often treated as agricultural waste, represent a valuable source of dietary fibre, essential minerals and polyphenolic compounds and their valorisation could support waste reduction strategies and promote their application in functional foods and nutraceutical formulations.
Kajal et al. (Sun,) studied this question.