Antioxidants are used to a large extend in food for retarding oxidation and in health food for prevention free radical diseases like arteriosclerosis, coronary heart disease and cancer.
Antioxidants are used to a large extend in food for retarding oxidation and in health food for prevention free radical diseases like arteriosclerosis, coronary heart disease and cancer.
All antioxidants have a phenolic structure, the synthetic BHA, BHT as well as gallates, the synthetic or natural tocopherols or the rosemary/sage diterpene phenols. Only the last ones have no E-number, are not regulated in dosage and thus are generally accepted as safe. They are declared as spice or rosemary/sage extracts and allow clean label products.
The rosemary/sage antioxidants are composed mainly of carnosolic acid, carnosol and other minor constituents like 12-methyl carnosolic acid, rosmanol, 7-methyl epirosmanol, etc. They have the big advantage of low volatility compared to BHA and BHT and thus have an excellent carry-through-effect if there are hot spots during food production and their efficacy depending on the target is equal or superior to tocopherols or synthetic alternatives. This recent technology fits well into the natural philosophy by eliminating harmful solvents, allows the production of well standardised products with respect to active ingredients and residual flavour and most importantly guarantees a high grade antioxidant composition. CO2 extraction widely preserves the genuine carnosolic acid as most important component whereas this is transferred in part to carnosol (which is however still active) during the more stressing conventional solvent extraction procedures.
CO2 rosemary and sage antioxidants have proved their efficacy in stabilising saturated animal lipids as well as polyunsaturated vegetable oils in many Rancimat testing procedures where they could easily replace other antioxidants.
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Flavex Naturextrakte GmbH is based in Rehlingen, Germany. www.flavex.com
