Technology Development for the Extraction of Antioxidants from Haskap Berry Using Supercritical Carbon Dioxide

Haskap berry was introduced to Nova Scotia in 2010 by LaHave Forests. The company has started to produce arange of haskap berry value-added products including juice, jam, dried berries, berry powder, etc. The currentprocess at LaHave Forests relies on freezing the berries, followed by thawing and pressing to collect the juice,which is then bottled and pasteurized. The by-product of juice production is further processed into driedberries and haskap syrup. Antioxidant that is left in dried berries has limited bioavailability. The proposedresearch aims to develop a process to extract antioxidants from the berry peel/pulp, which is a byproduct afterjuice extraction. The bioavailability of the antioxidant can be enhanced through the extraction and furtherpurification of antioxidants, allowing the product to be marketed as pharmaceutical grade. Our proposedtechnology for the extraction of antioxidants relies on the use of supercritical carbon dioxide, known as a greensolvent. The optimum condition for the highest extraction yield and antioxidants activity will be determined.Supercritical carbon dioxide extraction does not result in the presence of residual solvent in the final productand therefore is gaining a significance attention in food and pharmaceutical industry. Haskap is an importantnew crop in Canada and developing a process that adds value to a growing agricultural industry is of significantimportance.