As a result of the increase in the demand for oils and fats for both industrial and consumption purposes, frantic efforts have been initiated through research and experiments to find out as much sources of oil and fats as possible. Before now, oils and fats used by man were those obtained from animals, but presently, efforts through research and experiments have revealed a lot of plant sources of fats and oils to meet the observed increment in demand. These plants oils are otherwise known as vegetable oil and are obtained either from the seeds or the nuts of a plant. Examples of these oils are myristic oil, palm oil, palm kernel oil, oil bean seed oil, coconut oil among others.
As stated above, one of the fruits born by the frantic efforts to find suitable alternatives to animal sources of oils and fats is the discovery of myristic oil. Myristic oil is an extract from monodora myristica (Ehuru) of the family annonareoa. The oil is gotten from the seeds of the tree plant, which its seeds, are commonly used in the flavouring of food. Apart from the use of its seeds in food flavouring myristic oil is a very good edible oil it contains about 25% yield of the edible oil and 5% of volatile oil. (Van Oss 1975). Myristic oil just like other vegetable oils can be obtained by soxhlete extraction method, cold method, steam distillation among other extraction techniques.
Here in the eastern part of Nigeria, Monodora myristica is major grown in Nsukka, Enugu State. The tree considerably call and well branched. The fruits are round and big like that of bread fruit; containing numerous shelled seeds within the inner mass of the fruits. The seeds are capsular in shape and remain the base for its propagation. The fruit detatches and falls on the ground when riped; and the harvesting is done after the fruit must have decomposed. The harvesting period is 10th to 12th months of the year. (Okafor 1983). The seeds dishes out or powerful fragrance hence its use in the flavouring of food.
The English name for Monodora Myristica is Africa nut meg while its local name is Ehuru.
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