Newswise — CHICAGO- Avocado seeds are typically seen as waste by growers. But a new study in the Journal of Food Science, published by the Institute of Food Technologists, found that crushing avocado seeds along with air generates an orange color that may be used as natural coloring for food products in the future.
Avocado seeds account for 16 percent of the weight of the avocado. The discovery of the natural orange colorant that the seeds yield represents a potential added value for avocado growers and companies that process avocado into oil or food products, like guacamole.
While artificial colors are often easy to produce, stable, less expensive and have better coloring properties than natural colorants, there has been an increased effort to discover new natural alternatives in order to keep up with consumer trends.
Further research is underway by the team of scientists from Pennsylvania State University who conducted this study to assess the potential colorant qualities of the avocado seed extract in model foods and to the potential biological (antioxidant and anticancer) activity of the extract.
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About IFT The Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) is a nonprofit scientific society. Our individual members are professionals engaged in food science, food technology, and related professions in industry, academia, and government. IFT's mission is to advance the science of food, and our long-range vision is to ensure a safe and abundant food supply, contributing to healthier people everywhere.
For more than 70 years, the IFT has been unlocking the potential of the food science community by creating a dynamic global forum where members from more than 100 countries can share, learn, and grow. We champion the use of sound science across the food value chain through the exchange of knowledge, by providing education, and by furthering the advancement of the profession. IFT has offices in Chicago, Illinois and Washington, D.C. For more information, please visit ift.org.
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