From people to plants, Newfoundland and Labrador tends to breed hardy varieties. That includes a relatively recent transplant – the sea buckthorn whose unique chemical profile gives it commercial potential as a bioactive superfruit, according to a pair of food scientists at Memorial University’s biochemistry department.
Sea buckthorn is a shrub that produces orange-yellow berries and long slender leaves that are high in omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, vitamins E, B, and A and polyphenols. The plant has been used for centuries in foods, traditional medicine and as an active ingredient in moisturizers in its native northwestern Europe and central Asia.
It was introduced to Canada in the early 2000s following research by governmental agencies on the crop’s potential. There are experimental crops in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador.
While it has yet to be commercialized in this country, Memorial University PhD student Renan Danielski says the unique qualities of sea buckthorns grown in Newfoundland and Labrador make it particularly attractive.
Danielski and his supervisor, Professor Fereidoon Shahidi, recently published a study showing that when the plant is grown in Newfoundland and Labrador its seeds and pomace have higher concentrations of antioxidant polyphenols than other varieties.
The reason? The province’s frigid winters and cool summers. “In a cold climate, berries – whether it’s blueberries or sea buckthorn – are bit smaller,” says Shahidi. “That means the surface to volume ratio of the berries is larger, and since the concentrations of these compounds is in mainly in the skin, we have a higher content of these bioactive compounds.”
Using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detection coupled with time-of-flight mass spectrometry, the researchers identified phenolic acids, flavonoids, and tannins, with ellagic acid derivatives and catechin being the most dominant.
“These compounds act synergistically with each other, enhancing bioactive intensity,” says Shahidi.
However, food biochemist Rong Cao points out the Memorial study didn’t directly compare total phenolic content (TPC) with other buckthorn varieties, but rather relied on two previously published research papers.
“It was difficult to compare,” says Cao, a senior research scientist with the Guelph Research and Development Centre. “The cited papers measured the TPC in berries which may include seeds. Nonetheless, if the referenced studies had lower TPC with the seeds, it makes the Newfoundland one even higher in the flesh/pomace.”
Direct comparisons are in the works. “We are procuring sea buckthorns grown in other geographical areas for further testing,” says Shahidi.
Meanwhile, the current work on Newfoundland berries also found that in in vitro tests the plant’s bioactive compounds hindered free-radical-induced damage to DNA and LDL cholesterol. In addition, it inhibited metabolic enzymes linked to type 2 diabetes and obesity.
Shahidi and Danielski say the next step is to test the compounds in animal models and they’re looking for industry partners who might be interested in co-sponsoring the research. They’ve already had calls from Canadian and European companies – including wineries – that have expressed an interest in their findings.
“When we receive these calls, the first question we get is what kind of products can I make from this fruit?” says Danielski. The answer is everything from supplements and cosmetics to wine and bread.
“The goal is to use as much of the plant as possible, to have zero waste,” says Danielski.