Maximising the bioactive potential of flowers for applications in nutritional hybrid products
▶Summary
There is an urgent necessity to develop new nutritional products with enhanced functionality to meet the global need for healthy and sustainable foods. Although edible flowers are sustainable rich sources of vitamins, minerals and antioxidant compounds, they have been underutilized in human nutrition and remain underexplored by the food industry. FlowerPower will go beyond the state-of-the-art by unlocking the nutritional and techno-functional potential of edible flowers naturally found in Ireland and other European countries. To this end, this project aims to develop hybrid dairy products fortified with carotenoid-rich flowers. Plant proteins will be used as delivery systems to improve carotenoid stability and enhance the technological and digestive functionality of the product. Additionally, combining animal and plant ingredients in hybrid foods contributes to bridge the gap between nutritional needs and sustainability, supporting plant-based dietary choices while addressing new rising market demands, e.g. flexitarian consumers. The multidisciplinary research programme is comprised of four parts. (1) Characterization of the composition of petals from 2 flowers and structural and technological properties of 4 plant proteins (WP1). (2) Characterization of carotenoid-protein interactions in 2 flower/plant-protein combinations and assessment of their impact on carotenoid stability (WP2). (3) In vitro digestion of hybrid dairy foods in 2 model food structures with selected flower/plant protein combinations to assess carotenoid bioaccessibility (WP3). (4) Selection of hybrid dairy foods with enhanced technological and/or digestive features to develop prototypes for instrumental analysis and sensory evaluation (WP5).This project addresses Pathway 4 - EU's FOOD 2030 aimed at encouraging a dietary shift towards plant-based diets. Knowledge and concepts from this work are expected to increase competitiveness of the dairy sector by creating opportunities for new markets.