Carotenoid Extraction from Plants Using a Novel, Environmentally Friendly Solvent

Abstract

Few environmentally friendly solvents are available to extract carotenoids for use in foods. The most effective known solvents are products of the petroleum industry and toxic for human consumption. Yet carotenoid extracts are desirable for use in dietary supplements and as additives to enhance the health benefits of processed foods. Ethyl lactate is an excellent solvent to extract both trans- and cis-lycopene isomers from dried tomato powder, the extraction efficiency of which is enhanced by the addition of the antioxidants alpha-tocopherol and alpha-lipoic acid, both of which are known to benefit human health. It is also useful to extract lutein and beta-carotene from dried powders prepared from white corn and carrots. Because of its low flammability and its origin as a byproduct of the corn and soybean industries, it is more advantageous than ethyl acetate, which is a petroleum product.

Current options for the valorization of food manufacturing waste: a review

“…It was found also that carotenoids concentration increased with time, approaching a quasi-saturated condition at approximately 30 min of extraction. Ishida and Chapman (2009) confirmed that ethyl lactate is an excellent solvent to extract carotenoids. Machmudah et al (2012) discussed the extraction of lycopene from tomato peel by-product containing tomato seed using supercritical carbon dioxide and proved that the presence of tomato seed in the peel by-product improved the yield of extracted lycopene.…”

The Effect of Time, Temperature and Solid to Solvent Ratio on Pumpkin Carotenoids Extracted Using Food Grade Solvents

“…Nonetheless, a few environmentally friendly solvents can be used to extract carotenoids for foods fortification or supplement purposes. According to Ishida and Chapman (2009), the most effective known solvents are of products from the petroleum industry. However, they are unsafe for human consumption.…”

Processing, Valorization and Application of Bio-Waste Derived Compounds from Potato, Tomato, Olive and Cereals: A Review

“…In fact, processed foods are often enriched with carotenoids to improve their nutritive value. Furthermore, lycopene is widely applied in the cosmetics formulations [219][220][221].…”

“…Furthermore, ethyl lactate is colorless, has a high flashpoint and is completely biodegradable into CO 2 and water [221,225,226]. Some extraction procedures from tomato processing by-products using this solvent resulted in the highest yield of carotenoids compared to acetone and ethyl acetate [221,227]. Limonene is the main component of essential oil resulting from fruit skins of citrus.…”