Carob Bean (Ceratonia siliqua L.) and Its Products

ABSTRACT: Carob bean (Ceratonia siliqua L.) can be seen in Mediterranean climate regions. Carob fruit has high amounts of nutrients such as sugars, minerals and phenolic compounds. Main idea of consuming carob is to take energy from a natural source. Furthermore, carob is also used for producing some commercial products. Flour (powder), syrup, locust bean gum and d-pinitol are the examples. Carob flour produced from deseeded carob by roasting and grinding. It is a substituent of cacao in food industry. In Turkey, carob bean consumed as carob syrup the most. It is a traditional product obtained by extraction and evaporation respectively. Locust bean gum is a food additive and produced from seeds. D-pinitol is a bioactive compound and there are many researches about the effect of D-pinitol on diabetes and some cancer types. In the world, there is an increase in some nutrition originated diseases. For preventing this, nutritional habits should include unrefined energy sources. Carob is an option for taking unrefined sugar, minerals and phenolic compounds at once. The aim of this review is to gather different information about carob and its products and form a source for further researches