Pili
Canarium ovatum

Gen info
Canarium ovatum belongs to the family Burseraceae with 75 known genera and about 550 species. In the Philippines the family is represented by five genera, namely Canarium, Dacryodes, Garuga, Protium and Santiria.

Of the canarium species, there are 75 known and nine of which are found in the Philippines, with at least four of econimic importance: C. ovatum (Pili), C. indicum, C. album, and C. luzonicum (Sahing,Manila elemi).

A municipality in the province of Camarines Sur is named Pili, after the popular nut-producing tree.

 Botany
Erect and spreading tree, deciduous, predominantly dioecious, medium-sized to large, reaching up to 30 m or more, with trunk diameters of 50 cm or more. Leaves have deltoid to lingulate stipules, spirally arranged, imparipinnate, about 40 cm long. Leaflets are ovate to elliptic, 4-24 cm long and 2-12 cm wide, stiff-coriaceous, entire, base oblique, rounded to subcordate, apex acuminate with 8-12 pairs of nerves. Flowers are borne on cymose inflorescences at the leaf axils of young shoots. The fruit or nut, botanically a drupe, ovoid to ellipsoid, 4-7 cm long, 2.3=3.8 cm wide. Pulp has a thin skin, smooth and shiney, turning from light green to black when ripened. Shell is carpellary, elongated and trigonous, nearly triangular in transverse sections, with a basal pointed end, and a blunt and obtuse apical end, dirty brown outside, shiny and glabrous inside. Inside the shell is the functional locule containing the mature seed.

Distribution
The pili is indigenous to the Philippines, its center of diversity is the Bicol region where it is the priority crop. The trees have spread to the provinces of Catanduanes, Masbate and the southern Quezon area.

Constituents
Pili pulp, 64% of the fruit by weight, contains 73% moisture. On dry weight, 8% protein, 33.6% fat, 3.4% crude fiber, 9.2 % ash, 45*% carbohydrate. Pulp oil, greenish yellow in color, is 56.7% oleicglycerides, 13.5% linoleic glycerides and 29.3% saturated fatty acids. The kernel, which weighs 0.74-5.13 g and which comprises 4.4-16.6% of the whole fruit by weight, contains: 35.6-51.4% moisture, 11.5-15.7% protein, 69.2-76.6% fats and 2.59-4.32% carbohydrates. Its mineral and vitamin contents (per 100 g): 119 mg calcium, 508 mg phosphorus, 2.6 mg iron, 489 mg potassium, 45 IU vitamin A, 0.95 mg thiamine, 0.12 mg riboflavin, 0.4 mg niacin and traces of vitamin C (Intengan et al. 1968). Kernel oil is composed of oleic glycerides, 58.6% and palmitic acids, 38.2%; yellow with an agreeable odor and taste, suitable for culinary purposes and keeps perfectly for as long as 6 months (West and Balce 1923).

Parts used and preparation
Seed kernel.
Oleoresin (mixture of oil and resin).

Uses
Culinary
Young shoots are edible, used for cooking and making green salads.
Pili nut kernel is edible, crispy and delicious.
Pili "turron" is made from a mixture of ground pili kernel, sweet potato and sugar, seasoned with sesame and vanilla, mixed and cooked to desired consistency, cooked, and cut.
Pili pudding is made from mashed sweet potato, ground pili kernel, condensed milk, butter, sugar and eggs, vanilla seasoning, then baked to a light brown color.
Food: Roast seed kernel and eat as nuts. It can be roasted and sugar-coated, ingredient to cakes, puddings and creams, or preserved in syrup.
Roasted kernel sometimes used in chocolate-making.
Green pulp can be pickled, best after the shell has hardened but before the pulp becomes too fibrous.
Boiled ripe pulp is edible, best with salt, pepper and fish sauce.
In Sorsogon, the nut concoction is called "nilanta"—boiled in hot water to soften, seasoned with soy sauce, bagoong, and sili.
Folkloric
Laxative: Eat seed kernel as tolerated.
Emuslion from crushed kedrnels has been used as substitute for infant's milk.
Used for making medicinal ointments.
Others
Excellent border and shade tree.
Its resistance to strong winds providing windbreak for other crops.
Resin-rich wood makes it excellent firewood>
Wood used for house framing, muscial instruments and box-making.
Oil from the pulp has been used for manufacture of soap and other products.
The hard stony shell makes for excellent fuel and used as growing medium for orchids and anthuriums. (Coronel 1983)
Other pili products are candles.

Availability
Small or large scale commercial production. 




Additional Sources
Pili Nut
Roberto E. Coronel
http://www.bioversityinternational.org/Publications/Pdf/166.pdf