Nutritional analysis of wild yam (Dioscorea divaricata Blanco), a culturally important species to the Magbukun Ayta of Kanawan, Morong, Bataan, Philippines

Dioscorea divaricata Blanco (local name: buloy), a wild-harvested yam, is part of the traditional diet and a culturally important plant of the Magbukun Aytas in the Philippines. The nutritional content of the tubers was thus analyzed and compared to other yams, root crops, and rice (as the Ayta diet has shifted from buloy to rice as a staple food). Ranges of values (in %) from proximate analysis of boiled tubers were: moisture (69.3-76.4), crude protein (2.0-2.4), crude fat (0.2-0.6), crude fiber (0.9-2.1) and ash (0.6-0.7). Total dietary fiber, total sugar, starch, fatty acids, and minerals were also determined. Compared with other yams, buloy had relatively higher crude protein and ash content. Compared to rice, buloy had higher dietary fiber, calcium, and ash. Rice, on the other hand, had higher phosphorus content. Thus, the shift from buloy to rice compromises additional nutritional benefits such as dietary fiber, calcium and ash.