AbstractThe proximate chemical composition, the carbohydrate constituents and the amino acid make‐up of green and ripe plantain were determined. The quantity of total sugars considerably increased during ripening from 3.0 to 31.6% in the peel and from 1.3 to 17.3% in the pulp while starch concentration decreased from 50 to 35% and from 83 to 66% in the skin and the pulp, respectively. The skin was richer in cellulose (10%) and hemicellulose (13%) than the pulp which had 1.4% cellulose and 1.3% hemicellulose. The pulp protein was abundantly rich in arginine, aspartic acid and glutamic acid. Methionine was present in the lowest amount with tryptophan and cystine conspicuously being absent.