The Versatile Sago (Metroxylon sagu Rottb.) and Its Green Potential for Mindanao

Abstract

Sago palm can be found wild in marshy areas in the southern part of the Philippines. This palm, which is indigenous to Southeast Asia, is much valued because of its capacity to protect the environment and survive even in peat swamps and flooded areas without the need for pesticides and fertilizers. Sago is also resistant to forest fires. This hardy plant can yield as much as 15 to 25 tons of starch per hectare, one of the highest in terms of calorific yield among starch crops, by accumulating large amounts of starch in the trunk. It thrives in waterlogged, acidic soils where few other plants survive without the need to replant because there are suckers closely growing beside the mother plant when the latter gets to be harvested. Some important economic uses of sago starch besides being a staple food are presented.  Sago starch, like any other, can be used as food ingredient, as edible films and food packaging, as food extenders, and when “modified” they acquire more stability and gel strength for diverse uses. It is also converted into such products in the food and beverage industry as glucose, high fructose corn syrup, monosodium glutamate, maltodextrins, and cyclodextrins. More recently, appropriate biotechnologies are being studied for conversion of sago starch into high value products, specifically ethanol for fuel, and acetic and lactic acids, which are highly priced raw materials for the biopolymer industry.  Besides its use for food and industrial processing, the sago palm trunk and leaves are also widely known for their use as construction material or as raw material in the forest products industry.