Morinda citrifolia L., commonly known as noni, has emerged as a commercially successful bioactive ingredient used in pharmaceutical, nutraceutical and cosmetic products owing to the diverse therapeutic properties of its metabolites (Abou Assi et al., 2017). Noni parts including fruits, seeds, barks, leaves, and flowers are used in ethnomedicine and in various commercial products including powders, beverages, infusions, and seed oil (Almeida et al., 2019).
Nonico Co. Ltd is a Mauritian company producing noni juice for the local and the international markets. The company is highly motivated to diversify its product range. Importantly, seeds constitute 2.5% of the whole noni fruit and are regarded as a major waste of the company (Pazos et al., 2011). On the other hand, noni seed oil is a highly coveted product due to its safety profile, anti-inflammatory properties, and potential commercial applications (Palu et al., 2012).
Therefore, the aim of this project is to primarily add value to the seeds of noni via extraction of its oil and the development of a topical cream using the oil, hence encouraging new product range for the company to market locally as the company is facing some challenges with export due to the Covid 19 pandemic.
