Manganese Rich Vegetarian Foods in India: 25 Foods Ranked by Manganese per 100 g (IFCT 2017)

By NYUS Inc. · Published 25 October 2026

Of the 25 vegetarian foods ranked here from IFCT 2017, pine seed has the most manganese per 100 g (7.92 mg), then amaranth seed and niger seeds (4.44 mg each) and walnut (3.47 mg). The ranking uses the manganese (Mn) column of Table 5 (Minerals and Trace Elements) of the ICMR-NIN Indian Food Composition Tables 2017 (IFCT 2017), raw or dry food per 100 g, and the page also shows where everyday foods such as ragi, wheat, atta, dals, paneer, milk and spinach sit. It ranks the manganese in the food, not how much the body absorbs or what is left after cooking, which IFCT does not report.

What IFCT 2017 measures for manganese

IFCT 2017 reports manganese (Mn) in Table 5, Minerals and Trace Elements, in mg per 100 g edible portion, as the mean printed in the book (values are printed as whole numbers or with two decimals, exactly as in the book). The book measured manganese by atomic absorption spectrophotometry (PDF page 25), and the table note on PDF page 151 says a blank cell means below the detectable limit. A blank is not a zero: of the 528 rows in Table 5, manganese is blank for only 1 vegetarian row (tender palm fruit, E048), and it is not ranked here.

25 vegetarian foods ranked by manganese per 100 g

By IFCT 2017 Table 5, per 100 g of the raw or dry food, of the 25 foods ranked here, pine seed (7.92 mg) is first, amaranth seed and niger seeds (4.44 mg each) share second place, and coconut kernel, dry (1.61 mg) is last of the 25. Rows with the same printed value share a rank. Our reading: the table compares rows, it does not say how much of any food to eat, and the values are means of 5 or 6 regional samples.

This is a selection: the 145 vegetarian rows measured in exactly 5 or 6 regions with a manganese value printed, without spices and condiments, were ranked, and the top 25 are shown, not every row in the book. Spices and condiments, such as cloves (G023, 61.86 mg, 6 regions), are eaten in grams, so they are left out like seasonings; mustard seeds (H013, 4.23 mg), tamarind pulp and dried arecanut are left out for the same reason, and betel leaves (C010) because they are chewed, not eaten as a food. Eggs are left out because this is a vegetarian list. Rows measured in fewer than 5 regions, or in more than 6, are not ranked (one vegetarian row, toddy, K001, was measured in 10 regions and is an alcoholic drink, so it is left out). Strawberry (E063) is printed with 6 regions in one half of the table and 1 in the other, so it is not ranked.

Where everyday foods sit

Each row below is measured in 5 or 6 regions, and the last column is its rank among the 145 rows described above (rows with the same printed value share a rank).

What a serving holds, with weights we chose

IFCT lists foods per 100 g, so a serving needs a weight, and each weight below is ours. Each figure is the value per 100 g times the grams, divided by 100, to the nearest 0.01 mg. These are raw-food or as-sold values, not what is left in a cooked dish.

What the numbers say

• Nuts and seeds fill 12 of the 25 rows, and 4 of the top 10. Pine seed 7.92 mg, niger seeds 4.44 mg, walnut 3.47 mg and garden cress seeds 2.87 mg per 100 g are the four in the top 10.
• Cereals and millets fill 7 of the 25 and 4 of the top 10. Amaranth seed 4.44 mg, ragi 3.19 mg, whole wheat 3.19 mg and wheat flour (atta) 2.98 mg are the four in the top 10; semolina, bulgur and brown rice also make the 25.
• Pulses fill 6 of the 25 rows. Whole horse gram 3.13 mg, whole Bengal gram 2.71 mg and brown soya bean 2.69 mg lead them (ranks 7, 10 and 11); white field bean, whole urad and chana dal follow.
• Refined grain, dairy and many vegetables are lower. Per 100 g raw milled rice 0.73 mg, potato 0.14 mg, paneer 0.13 mg and whole cow milk 0.01 mg, so none of them is in the top 25.

What this page leaves out

• Absorption and cooking: IFCT 2017 reports the raw food, not how much the body takes up or what is left after cooking, and we did not read a source that gives this for Indian foods.
• Health conditions: this page makes no claim about any condition and says nothing about which foods to eat or avoid.
• Supplements, requirements, upper limits and doses: none is quoted here.
• Eggs and non-vegetarian foods, rows with fewer than 5 or more than 6 regions, cooked dishes with no IFCT row, and packaged foods.
• Whether you have enough of any nutrient: only a doctor or registered dietitian can tell you that.

A note on health

This article is general educational content, not medical advice. It does not say that any food prevents or treats any condition. If you are pregnant or breastfeeding, follow a restricted diet, take medicines or supplements, or have been told a nutrient is low or high, talk to a doctor or registered dietitian.

For other minerals from the same table, see copper-rich vegetarian foods, magnesium-rich vegetarian foods, zinc-rich vegetarian foods, iron-rich vegetarian foods, calcium-rich vegetarian foods, the dry fruits and nuts nutrition chart and the vegetarian nutrient guide.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• ICMR-NIN, Indian Food Composition Tables 2017 (IFCT 2017). Table 5 (Minerals and Trace Elements), Manganese (Mn, mg) column, per 100 g edible portion, mean values as printed, rows opened and read from the PDF on 25 Oct 2026: PDF pages 152, 154, 156, 180, 182 for the ranked rows, PDF pages 152 to 206 (even pages) for all other rows, PDF page 151 for the table note on blank cells. Methods: PDF pages 25 and 28.

The serving weights, the ranks and the serving figures are NYUS's own arithmetic, and every sentence starting "Our reading" is NYUS opinion, not from a study. Names in brackets are our matching to the IFCT row names.