Also known as Japanese Medlar, Japanese plum and Chinese Plum, Loquats are a species of flowering plant that comes from south-central China. It has a smooth or downy, yellow or orange, sometimes red-blushed skin and are grown in clusters. They are an oval or pear shape measuring between 3-5cm long. They have a tangy flesh which is white, yellow or orange and sweet.
They are often used to make jams, jellies and chutneys, and are often tinned or are poached in a light syrup. Sometimes they are used to make pies and tarts.
As per usual, lets take a look at their nutritional data, focussing particularly on their acid, fat, sugar, phosphorus, and calcium content.
A good amount of vitamin c and a would also be very beneficial.
Energy 197 kJ (47 kcal)
Carbohydrates 12.14 g
– Dietary fiber 1.7 g
Fat 0.2 g
Protein 0.43 g
Vitamin A equiv. 76 μg (10%)
Thiamine (vit. B1) 0.019 mg (2%)
Riboflavin (vit. B2) 0.024 mg (2%)
Niacin (vit. B3) 0.18 mg (1%)
Vitamin B6 0.1 mg (8%)
Folate (vit. B9) 14 μg (4%)
Vitamin C 1 mg (1%)
Calcium 16 mg (2%)
Iron 0.28 mg (2%)
Magnesium 13 mg (4%)
Manganese 0.148 mg (7%)
Phosphorus 27 mg (4%)
Potassium 266 mg (6%)
Sodium 1 mg (0%)
Zinc 0.05 mg (1%)
(source: Wikipedia)
As you can see Loquats contain a bit of phosphorus,calcium, but are quite acidic.
They do contain a hint of vitamin c but have a very high amount of vitamin a which is great.
Do remove the seeds though and cut up before serving.
Because of their acidic content, they can only be eaten once a week by piggies in small amounts. But they do not particularly benefit guinea pigs because of the low vitamin c content and there are better fruits for them to have in that aspect.