fiber & functional By-products from cauliflower are a rich source of dietary fiber and proteins and when added at certain levels to cereal basedexpanded snacks, do not spoil the taste, according to researchpublished in the Journal of Food Engineering. Cauliflower also has antioxidant and anticarcinogenic propertiesand is "inexpensive" to use because it has a high waste index, the researchers fromManchester Metropolitan University in the UK and GaziantepUniversity, Turkey said. The USA is ranked sixth in the world for cauliflower production,generating an estimated 335,530 metric tons, worth almost$76million, according to UN figures for 2005. Professor Paul Ainsworth, director of the Manchester Food ResearchCentre, told FoodNavigator-USA.com: "Whenever you buy cauliflower from the supermarkets they are alwaystrimmed. You are probably using nearly 50 percent. "The outer leaves are removed which go to waste. We are trying toutilize the waste and minimize landfill." Prof. Ainsworth added that they were also looking at usingcauliflower in bread to boost the fiber content, again with goodresults. However he said this changed the color so it looked morelike wholemeal rather than white bread. Interest in dietary fiber has been increasing with scientificstudies linking increased intake to reduced risks of cancers suchas colorectal, and cardiovascular disease. As such, there is atrend to find new sources of dietary fiber as functionalingredients. Despite the mounting evidence for the benefits of dietary fiber, asurvey by Columbia University showed the average intake in the USwas about 12.5 grams a day, well short of the 32 grams of fiber perday recommended by the US National Fiber Council. The study is reportedly the first to use cauliflower by-products inready-to-eat snacks. The researchers used cauliflower with someflorets, curd, stem and leaves that were washed thoroughly and thenground. The dried sample was then milled and wheat flour wasreplaced with the dry cauliflower at levels of 5, 10, 15 and 20percent. In terms of the influence of cauliflower levels on taste, a sensorytest panel indicated that it could be incorporated into aready-to-eat snack up to a level of 10 percent. Although thereport added that improving the flavor of the end product was stillin progress as the taste was considered too strong at levels above10 percent cauliflower addition. The fiber content of extruded products without cauliflower was 5.6percent but that increased to 8.3 percent when the productcontained 10 percent cauliflower. The figures for protein increased from 6.3 per cent without cauliflower to 19 per centwith 10 percent. A number of researchers have already looked at the value of fruitsand vegetable by-products such as apple, pear, orange, peach,blackcurrant, cherry, artichoke, asparagus, onion and carrot pomaceas sources of dietary fiber supplements in refined food. And a recent report by Finnish researchers found that proteinsisolated from the potato, obtained as processing waste from thepotato industry, may be biologically active and capable of reducingblood pressure, as well as having antioxidant activity.
2008-06-12 18:04:19
