what is the usage of crocin in food industry?

In many countries today we are witnessing a continuous increase in the production and variety of food products. This makes innovation and application of new technologies unavoidable. On the other hand, as a result and because of the modern industrial methods, the food chain has become much more complex, increasing the possibility of chemical contamination of food products. Modern applied research methods are an essential part of the technology to produce ready-and semi-ready-to-use saffron products of nutritious value in order to satisfy the potential needs of consumers.

Saffron is a natural organic colorant and unlike other plant colorants it is highly permanent and does not fade easily; in fact it is mainly used because of its high coloring power. Therefore it has many applications in water environments and its use in the food industry is quite economical.
For the above reasons, there is a day growing trend of using saffron in food technology and formulation of new saffron products such as: saffron dessert powder, saffron crème caramel powder, saffron beverage powder, saffron cake mix, saffron cream powder, saffron batter powder, different semi-ready to use saffron soups and different saffron spice mixtures.

Crocin, the key of using saffon

One of the most widely used natural colorants is crocin, sometimes called crocin yellow, which is a common food dye in the Far East. It is responsible for the colour of saffron, which is prepared from flowers of the crocusCrocus sativus L., and it is also extracted from the fruits of the gardenia, Gardenia jasminoides Ellis. Alos, it is one of main carotenoids and pharmacologically active components of saffron.

Saffron has been a spice for a long time. Most of us use powdered or string saffron at home, and for saffron rice and saffron syrup. But the consumption of saffron in foods does not end there. Today, many sectors of the food industry use saffron to flavor and color their products. The usage of saffron are as follows:

1- Application of saffron in beverage and other beverage industries

One of the areas of use of saffron is in the production of beverages. The amount of saffron used in non-alcoholic beverages is usually 3 to 7 parts per million. Saffron is also used in the preparation of herbal syrups, including simple lemon and saffron syrups.

2- Application of saffron in confectionery and baking industries

Another use of saffron is in the confectionery industry. The amount of saffron used in confectionery is usually 10 parts per million. Saffron is used to color and flavor flour products, including cakes, bread.

“Saffron is the raw material of many products in the world”

3- Application of saffron in dairy industry

Saffron is also used in dairy products such as milk, cream, butter and ice cream. The amount of saffron used in ice cream is 3 to 7.5 parts per million.

4- Application of saffron in meat industry

Finally, the use of saffron in the meat industry can be mentioned. Saffron is used as an aromatic spice to color meat products such as sausages. Saffron is also used in the preparation of canned meat, especially chicken-based products. The amount of saffron used in meat is 260 parts per million.

Is Crocin useful for health?

what is crocin?

Saffron contains several compounds such as safranal, picrocrocin and crocin, the latter is the main antioxidant in saffron working as a dye. Crocin is a carotenoid chemical compound that is present in the flowers crocus and gardenia. Crocin is the chemical mainly responsible for the color of saffron. Chemically, the dieter derived from the disaccharide gentiobiose and dicarboxylic acid crocetin is crocin.

It is one of main carotenoids and pharmacologically active components of saffron. Crocin is also responsible for the color of saffron. Cronic posseses different therapeutic properties, including effects on nervous system disorders (antidementia agent, antidepressant, anxiolytic, and aphrodisiac) as well as antioxidant, cardioprotective, and antitumor properties

Saffron and mainly crocin are effective antidepressant and anti-anxiety agents, as well as sexual motivator, memory enhancer and sedative which are used for the treatment of different central nervous system disorders.

Crocin, safranal, and crocetin are the components of the plant that play a role in the antidepressant effect based on the available evidence. Current evidence demonstrating that saffron administration, at a dosage of 28 mg/day for 4 weeks, had beneficial effects on mood, anxiety, and stress management in individuals self-reporting low mood, yet sleep quality did not improve.

Crocetin and crocin are yellow pigments that are normally obtained from saffron (Crocus sativus). Saffron powder as well as extract are used as both colorant and spice. However, the use of saffron powder and extract as food colorant is limited due to its high cost and is restricted only in the United States. The European Union has not approved saffron for its use as colorant but allows its use as spice.

In Japan and China, crocin extracted from fruit of gardenia yellow (Gardenia jasminoides and Gardenia augusta) has been approved for use in foods. On the other hand, the use of crocin obtained from the fruit has not been permitted in the United States and European Union.

What is Saffron Honey?

It is said that honey and saffron are like a match made in heaven. Both are powerful health enhancing natural products that and together they offer a unique blend of health-giving nutrients and taste. High quality organic honey blended with pure saffron threads creates amazingly flavorful and healthy “Saffron Honey“. Saffron Honey combines the health benefits of both saffron and honey. It is enjoyable to be consumed while nourishing body with various essential nutrients & vitamins; therefore effective to reduce inflammation, improve blood circulation, calm nervousness, etc. Saffron Honey can be consumed on its own, adding to tea or just mix it with water.

What is saffron?

Saffron is a highly valued spice and one of the most expensive culinary ingredients in the world. It’s from the Crocus family and the word crocus means thread in Greek, referring to the appearance of its stamens. Saffron originates from the Arabic word, Zafaran.

What is Saffron Honey benefits?

The other side, Honey is rich in vitamins, proteins, and minerals and is combined with saffron that has powerful anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties and is also a stimulant, expectorant, antispasmodic, aphrodisiac and stomachic. It offers a unique blend of taste and nutrition. The organic saffron honey helps replace the amount of sugar in your diet which aids in weight loss and is helpful for diabetics. It is infused with rare high potency and has a delicate flavor, aroma and color.

  • Reduces appetite and stops over-eating.
  • Burns fat and boosts metabolism to help lose weight.
  • Removes acne and skin blemishes. Good for both dry skin and oily skin.
  • Reduces wrinkles due to ageing skin.
  • It protects cells from damaging effects of free radicals.
  • Improves brain chemistry. Balances mood and enhances memory.
  • Aids digestive system and liver function.
  • Strengthen immune system and decreases formation of malignant cells.
  • Potassium found in saffron helps to maintain blood pressure and reduces risk of heart diseases.

How to make saffron Honey at Home?

As it is really hard to find real saffron honey made by honey bees, people use regular raw honey and infuse it with saffron stigmas. Here is how it’s done:

  • 1/2 cup mild honey (anything, from acacia, sunflower to clover or tupelo)
  • 1/2 teaspoon saffron threads.
1 teaspoon contains 3 mg of saffron.

Stir them in a glass jar with screw top. Close the jar and let it stay for at least 5 days before consumption. Enjoy the homemade honey saffron on a slice of buttered whole-grain bread for breakfast or drizzled over a bowl of Greek yogurt with a few toasted walnuts. It’s amazing! Or spoon some into a bowl of warm breakfast oats and wait for the vibrant strands to release their orange hues.

Beyond its obvious health value, saffron honey is really tasty. You can enjoy it on a slice of buttered bread or drizzled over a bowl of greek yogurt with some walnuts, or a bowl of breakfast cereals.

Due to its high antioxidant properties, it is advised not to use metal spoon and water temperature higher than 60 °C to prevent oxidation

what are Saffron Soap Health Benefits?

According to a few sources, the famous king of Persia, Cyrus the Great, used to take baths sprinkled with saffron because he believed that this spice can heal his battle wounds. It seems that he was right because saffron is an excellent source of nutrients that supports healing and exfoliation.

While it’s true that there are many commercial cosmetic skin care products in the market, it is also true that most of them contain artificial and processed ingredients that can cause side effects. If you want to stay safe and take good care of your skin at the same time, choose a natural approach. In the last few years, more and more people are interested in using saffron soap for skin health. The benefits of using saffron soap As the name suggests, saffron soap is a type of soap based on saffron. This spice is getting quite popular in the recent years thanks to the positive experiences that many people had with saffron.

Saffron Soap, and how Saffron is good for skin health Taking care of your skin is very important not just because skin affects our physical appearance, but because the condition of this organ affects our overall health. Saffron’s provitamin helps make skin fair and lustrous; its pleasant holy aroma leaves body refreshing all day long. As we explained the benefits of saffron for the skin in separate articles.

A team of scientists led by Dr. Fehrat, have found that the stigmas of the saffron flower can block tyrosinase and as a result of that the production of melanin is controlled in a better way. It softens the skin Having cracked heels can definitely ruin your physical appearance especially during the summer period.

Uses of saffron soap

It benefits for skin include making your skin glow, brightening skin, removing tan, skin toning and improving complexion.

  • For glowing skin : Due to daily pollution Harsh weather and several other factors skin tends to become dull and lifeless. Application of saffron soap over the skin can bring back the lost glow on the face.
  • Improve complexion : Saffron is a most popular skin lightening ingredient used in many cosmetic products. This improves blood circulation nourishes the skin and lighten the complexion on regular use.
  • To tone the skin : Saffron serves you as a great natural toner, it keeps your skin fresh healthy and younger.
  • For brightening skin : If you have pigmentations skin blemishes from acne small scars uneven skin tone. Pure saffron hydrate your skin and give you an even and bright complexion.
  • To cleans skin : This soap lightens and evens your skin tone, while cleansing away pore-deep impurities.
  • Flawless skin : It gently fades away pigmentation marks and blemishes and grants you a faier and flawless complexion.

Use saffron soap on a regular basis to soften your skin. Of course, this soap can make your skin softer regardless of the body part where it’s used. It promotes skin hydration Finally, saffron soap can help you keep the skin hydrated. Saffron has an ability to absorb moisture and fight chapped dried skin. Remember that these are just some of the many reasons why you should replace your ordinary soap with a saffron soap.

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Does saffron improve COVID19?

The world as we know it has changed significantly in the post-COVID era. NO completely effective drugs and treatments are not recognized for this virus. As we continue to deal with the fallout of the pandemic, the numbers of people dealing with depression, anxiety, and the consequences of long-term stress will likely continue to grow.

Mood disorders, an increasing issue

Stress induces the human body to produce cortisol, the “stress hormone,” which can impact virtually every system in the body. While short-term cortisol effects are natural and even beneficial, most people are dealing with long-term effects, which can cause symptoms ranging from fatigue, gastrointestinal issues, increased blood pressure, insomnia, and a host of others – most significantly, anxiety and depression.

In the next few years, we will see record numbers of people suffering from these mood disorders. Consumers have shown a steadily-increasing interest in herbal remedies in the previous decades, so it’s a natural conclusion that they will be looking for naturally-derived remedies for stress. One of the ingredients set to take center stage in this is saffron.

Saffron, a safe and effective solution

Saffron (crocus sativus) is a traditional herbal medication derived from the stigma and style of the autumn crocus flower. It’s been used as a medicinal treatment for over 3,600 years and has been recognized as being as effective for the treatment of depression as imipramine or fluoxetine.

However, unlike the pharmaceutical drugs, there were no severe adverse side effects reported with saffron usage. Positive effects in trial participants were noted in as little as one week, on a dosage of 30mg daily, although full effects were usually demonstrated with a minimum of two weeks of usage.

Saffron kills COVID19

Recently, saffron and its compounds were used to treat different viral diseases. Saffron extract and its major ingredients have shown antiviral effects. In this study, the steered molecular dynamics simulation was used for investigating the effect of four main components of saffron that include: crocin, crocetin, safranal, and picrocrocin as candidate for drug molecules, on COVID-19.

The binding energies between drug molecules and spike protein and the main protease of the virus were evaluated. The obtained results based on Lennard-Jones and electrostatic potentials demonstrated that crocetin has a high affinity towards spike protein and also the main protease of the virus. Also, the quantum mechanics calculations elucidated that the crocetin could overcome energy barrier of lipid bilayer with strong dipole moment and polarizability. The pharmacokinetic and ADMET properties proved that crocetin could be a suitable drug candidate. So, crocetin could be a promising drug for treatment of COVID-19.

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5 Health Benefits of Using Saffron Powder

Saffron, commonly known as the “Sun Spice” has been used for centuries. Although in the past few decades saffron has become increasingly popular for its multitude of medicinal benefits with accumulating scientific research studies confirming the abundance of health-promoting compounds within this miraculous spice.

How to Use Saffron Powder

Saffron powder is actually pretty easy to use. However, what you have to watch out is the amount you use since a pinch of saffron – believe it or not – actually goes a long way. Saffron powder is very potent so professional cooks even use only a tiny bit for their dishes and beverages. It can be infused in cocktails and tea for a beautiful aroma and sophisticated taste. Saffron powder would make a great addition to dry rubs for pork and lamb as well. Saffron also gives that golden colour to your Middle Eastern rice dishes.

Health Benefits of Using Saffron Powder

As expensive as it is, saffron not only makes up for it with aroma and taste but also its range of health benefits. Here are some benefits that come with using premium saffron powder to name a few:

1- Powerful Immune Booster

The compounds in saffron such as crocin, crocetin, safranal and kaempferol are antioxidants, meaning they work to reverse and protect the cell from oxidative damage. 

2- Potential Anti-Cancer Properties

Crocin is a dark red-orange, water soluble compound found in saffron that has been found to trigger apoptosis (programmed cell death) in many types of human cancer cells. Both animal models and cultured human cell studies have supplied an abundance of evidence of the anti-tumor, anti-carcinogenic properties of saffron and its constituents, demonstrating the chemopreventive effects of saffron in cancers such as leukemia, ovarian carcinoma, colon adenocarcinoma, lung cancer and others

3-May Enhance Mood and Treat Depressive Symptoms

You may not know this but saffron is sometimes called the “sunshine spice”. Aside from its distinct and bright pigment, the reason it got this nickname is because of its antidepressant properties. Studies have found that saffron is effective in alleviating symptoms of depression.

4- Reduces appetite and helps in weight loss

Saffron has proven effective in curbing appetite and aids in weight loss. One of the main causes of unwanted weight gain is through constant snacking. Saffron helps by reducing your appetite which lessens your food intake and ultimately helps in weight loss.

What are the effects of saffron?

Saffron is a spice of Crocus sativus (Saffron crocus) which belongs to the family of iridaceae1 and studies has advocates its role in diseases cure. Its health management properties have been discussed in traditional prescriptions including Chinese, Ayurveda and Unani medicines. Different plant parts like peels, fruits, seeds and rind of Crocus sativus contain various biochemically active ingredients such as crocin, crocetin, and safranal in different proportion. These constituents have demonstrated the health promoting effect through the modulation of various biological and physiological processes Earlier studies reported that saffron is safe at various doses and did not show any severe side effects.

Chief ingredients of saffron

Saffron stigma is mixture of various components and such constituents have therapeutics importance in the health management through the modulation of various biological pathways. It contain numerous volatile compounds and ingredients including crocin, picrocrocin and safranal and these compounds are accountable for color, taste and odor of saffron respectively. Safranal is the major coloring constituent of saffron, so saffron is used as a flavoring and coloring agent. In addition to these compounds, saffron also contains little amounts of other pigments like anthocyanin, α-carotene, β- carotene, and zegxantin.

Possible mechanism of action of saffron and its ingredient in diseases prevention

The exact mechanism by which saffron and its constituents demonstrate the therapeutic role in diseases prevention is yet to be fully elucidated. Laboratory based research has revealed that saffron constituents modulate the activity of various enzymes involved in free radical scavenging. Moreover, these components reduce the lipid peroxidation and enhance the antioxidant status. Stigma ethanolic fraction of saffron showed the highest antioxidant activity that might be recognized due to the presence of phenolics and flavonoids.

Anti-tumour activity

It is very well known that medicinal plants such as curcumin, ginger, carica papaya and black seed have therapeutic role in the management of numerous diseases including tumour. Saffron and its active constituents perform an important role in the inhibition of tumour development and progression Table 2.

These days the popularity of alternative medicines based treatment is gaining much interest in the health practice. Saffron has shown its role in disease prevention and treatment and its importance in disease cure have been documented. Moreover, it is believed to be a safe and its adverse effect was not noticed at various doses.

The role of saffron including crocin and crocetin in the management of numerous diseases has proven via modulation of various physiological and biochemical pathways. Saffron has also been reported to exhibit an anti-tumour effect through inactivation or activation of different molecular cascades.

Source:Here

what is the highest quality saffron?

Saffron is basically considered as a spice which is derived from a flower whose scientific name is Crocus Sativus. It is a delicate purple coloured flower whose stigmas are dried to extract the spice. It is cultivated once in a year. saffron has been used for thousands of years as a seasoning, fragrance, dye, and medicine. The stigmas of the flower are harvested and processed by hand which is very labor intensive and the reason why Saffron is considered the world’s most expensive spice.

High-quality saffron comes from the regions of the world where saffron grows naturally. This is why Persian Saffron  is always high on the list. There are different types of saffron. The highest quality saffron is all red saffron and a subtype called negin grade saffron. The latter is considered to be premium quality saffron where the threads form a red cluster. A lot of work and skills are needed to produce negin saffron.

 

Every serious saffron manufacturer states the type and grade of saffron. If you see that the saffron threads have yellow-white ends, it means that the manufacturer is trying to add some weight. These parts of the stigma are still aromatic but they don’t add any color.

 

The Right Climate for Cultivation 

The best saffron is cultivated in countries with a suitable climate for the saffron flower to grow. The latter likes cold, wet winters, hot summers, and sandy soil. Saffron grows well in such counties as Iran, India, Afghanistan, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Morocco, etc.

Perfectly Dried Saffron

High-quality saffron is perfectly dried saffron. After harvesting, saffron threads should be dried to the perfect degree. They shouldn’t be moist but shouldn’t be roasted either. Once dried, saffron should be properly packaged and stored. Hardly will you find high-quality saffron sold in an ordinary plastic spice jar.

 

How to Test the Quality of Saffron?

Not all saffron brands sell high-quality saffron. As there are brands on the market that sell fake saffron, it is best to buy it from trusted manufacturers. If you have already bought saffron, here is how to tell if it is real high-quality saffron or not.

  • Smell it. Fake saffron doesn’t have a distinct smell. Real saffron, on the other hand, has a unique aroma with sweet notes. It also smells somewhat musky and floral.
  • Taste it. Although saffron is a very aromatic spice, it doesn’t have a distinct taste. It is slightly sweet, floral, and bitter all at the same time. If your saffron tastes overly sweet or metallic, it is either fake or very low-quality.

 

Is saffron useful in Cosmetics industry?

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