The plant's ethno-medicinal importance, antioxidant potential, inhibitory activity against the Aspergillus group of fungi and production of aflatoxins may add a new dimension to its usefulness in the protection of stored product.

Diversity needs to be "conserved through use." Owing to the global need, the present study includes two underutilized berries, Carissa carandus and Eleagnus conferta, to explore their potential as supplementary food by evaluating their antioxidant activity and approximate chemical composition. Berries of E. conferta are a richer source of carotene, ascorbic acid, protein, and magnesium, whereas berries of C. carandus are rich in sugars, lipids, iron, and magnesium. The antioxidant properties of the berries and a comparative account on their performance using DPPH and FRAP assay was studied. Both assays revealed high activity in the peel extract of berries of C. carandus. The LC-MS/MS profile of C. carandus reveals the presence of eleven different polyphenolic compounds while E. conferta had only four of these compounds.

Eleven cultivars of banana from southern India were analyzed for different biochemical parameters. 'Nendran' showed highest content of total carotene and reducing sugars, whereas 'Grand Naine' showed highest activity of enzyme PPO in the pulp. 'Rasbalei' exhibited high levels of total phenolics and flavonoids. Mineral analysis depicted 'Basrai' and 'Jawari' to be rich sources of iron and zinc, respectively. Significant cultivar differences with reference to geographical distribution was revealed by Bray Curtis Cluster and Principal Component analysis. The present study also adds to the current knowledge of the nutritive values (micronutrients), antioxidant potential, PPO enzyme, and some biochemical aspects of banana.