[pronut-hiv] Role for wild vegetables in household foodsecurity: Out of Africa: Novel botanicals enter market

["Rachel Stern" <sternworks@verizon.net>]

----- Out of Africa: Novel botanicals enter market

11/05/2006- Functional food & beverage makers could soon be turning 
to Africa for more & more novel plant extracts, Vitafoods attendees 
heard yesterday. 

While some extracts, like Devil's claw, honeybush, & rooibus extracts 
are currently available in Europe & elsewhere, novel products like 
extracts from the iconic baobab tree could be hitting European 
shelves sooner rather than later. 

The southern Africa natural products trade association, PhytoTrade 
Africa, in collaboration with So. African company, Afriplex, look set 
to introduce baobab fruit pulp products to industry. 

Negotiations with several European companies are on-going, & Donnie 
Malherbe, Afriplex's operations director, told NutraIngredients.com 
that he expects baobab-containing products to be available in 
Europe "within the next year." 

"We've been working for some time with Afriplex on the baobab fruit," 
explained Cyril Lombard, market development manager, PhytoTrade 
Africa. "With its long history of safe & traditional use on the 
continent, this is one of Africa's most exciting species. 

Its nutritional profile & properties, as well as its inherent market 
appeal, make it an interesting novel ingredient for the food & 
beverage industry. Through this partnership, we will shortly be able 
to offer baobab fruit pulp to industry in a range of qualities & 
formats," said Lombard. 

Dr Joerg Gruenwald from Germany-based Analyze & Realize told a packed 
auditorium at Geneva's PalExpo centre that the fruit pulp of the 
baobab has an atioxidant activity about 4 times that of kiwi or apple 
pulp. 

The fruit has a "good & long track record [of safety] among 
indiginous populations," said Malherbe, & was used in ancient Egypt 
as a tx of fevers, dysentery & blood wounds. 

The main nutrients include vit C, riboflavin, niacin, pectin & 
citric, malic & succinic acids, while the oil also contains the 
vitamins A, D & E. 

As if a wealth of nutrients wasn't sufficient, the pulp is also 
reported to be prebiotic & stimulate the intestinal microflora. 

Possible applications as a functional ingredient range from 
beverages, jams, sauces, snack bars & breakfast cereals, as well as 
in dietary supplements, said Gruenwald. 

Although the baobab fruits are to be wild-harvested, concerns about 
sustainability are unfounded. "The volumes are there," said Malherbe. 
Indeed, Gruenwald told attendees that sustainable harvest could yield 
as much as 900,000 tons/year. 

Accreditation as a novel ingredient in Europe is coming this summer, 
said a PhytoTrade Africa source, with demand already "huge". 

Afriplex & PhytoTrade Africa are also collaborating on Kigelia 
africana, the African sausage tree, which has been interesting both 
nutraceutical & cosmetic industries. 

http://www.foodnavigator.com/news/ng.asp?n=67635-vitafoods-devil-s-
claw-baobab