Heat treatment improves the sensory properties of the ultrafiltration by-product of honeybush (Cyclopia genistoides) extract.

BACKGROUND: Ultrafiltration of green honeybush (Cyclopia genistoides) extract results in a by-product (retentate). Application of further separation processes for recovery of polyphenols would entail creation of additional waste. Repurposing the retentate as a food flavour ingredient provides an alternative valorization approach. RESULTS: The retentate, suspended in water (270 g L-1 ), was heat-treated at 80 °C for 2, 4, 8 and 16 h, and at 90 °C for 2, 4, 6 and 8 h to change its sensory profile. The heat-treated retentate, diluted to beverage strength (2.15 g L-1 ), had prominent 'grape/Muscat-like' and 'marmalade/citrus' aroma and flavour notes. Overall, heating for ≤ 4 h increased the intensities of positive flavour and aroma notes, while reducing those of 'green/grass', 'hay' and bitterness, whereafter further heating only had a slight effect on the aroma profile at 80 °C (P < 0.05), but not at 90 °C (P ≥ 0.05). The heat treatments, 80 °C/4 h and 90 °C/4 h, were subsequently applied to different batches of retentate (n = 10) to accommodate the effect of natural product variation. Heating at 90 °C produced higher intensities of positive aroma attributes (P < 0.05), but was more detrimental to the phenolic stability, compared to 80 °C. CONCLUSION: After heat treatment, the phenolic content of C. genistoides retentate, reconstituted to beverage strength, still fell within the range of a typical 'fermented' (oxidized) honeybush leaf tea infusion. The change in phenolic composition will not diminish the benefit of an improved sensory profile for the retentate by-product through heating. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry.

African legumes: a vital but under-utilized resource.

Although nodulated legumes have been used by indigenous peoples in Africa for centuries, their full potential has never been realized. With modern technology there is scope for rapid improvement of both plant and microbial germplasm. This review gives examples of some recent developments in the form of case studies; these range from multipurpose human food crops, such as cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.), through to beverages (teas) that are also income-generating such as rooibos (Aspalathus linearis (Burm. f.) R. Dahlgren, honeybush (Cyclopia Vent. spp.), and the widely used food additive gum arabic (Acacia senegal (L.) Willd.). These and other potential crops are well-adapted to the many different soil and climatic conditions of Africa, in particular, drought and low nutrients. All can nodulate and fix nitrogen, with varying degrees of effectiveness and using a range of bacterial symbionts. The further development of these and other species is essential, not only for African use, but also to retain the agricultural diversity that is essential for a changing world that is being increasingly dominated by a few crops such as soybean.

Field assessment of symbiotic N2 fixation in wild and cultivated Cyclopia species in the South African fynbos by 15N natural abundance.

Nitrogen (N) derived from symbiotic fixation of atmospheric N(2) in wild and cultivated populations of Cyclopia, a woody endemic genus used to make honeybush tea in the Western Cape of South Africa, was quantified by the (15)N natural abundance method. Because Cyclopia species are naturally mycorrhizal, non-N(2)-fixing arbuscular mycorrhizal shrubs of similar phenology to Cyclopia were chosen as reference plants to provide the delta(15)N value of soil-derived N. Isotopic analysis showed that wild populations of Cyclopia were highly dependent on N(2) fixation for their N nutrition, ranging from 70 +/- 4% to 100 +/- 7% (mean +/- SE) at all sites, except for one. Further evidence of the high dependency of wild Cyclopia populations on symbiotic N was provided by their significantly higher foliar N concentrations compared with the non-legume reference plants. However, cultivated Cyclopia exhibited variable amounts of N(2) fixation, with Cyclopia genistoides (L.) R. Br., for example, showing low amounts of N(2) fixation at Sites P2 and P3 (0 +/- 51% and 8 +/- 46%, respectively) as a result of low D values (D is defined as the difference between the mean delta(15)N value of the reference plants and the B value of the test Cyclopia species, where B is the delta(15)N of an inoculated test legume grown in an N-free growth medium), whereas at Sites P1, P2, P5 and P6, up to 89 +/- 2%, 94 +/- 13%, 85 +/- 13% and 100 +/- 18%, respectively, plant N was derived from atmospheric fixation. The high symbiotic N nutrition observed for wild populations of Cyclopia suggests that these populations are major contributors to the N economy of the nutrient-poor soils of the South African fynbos. These data indicate that by breeding for high N(2) fixation rates in Cyclopia cultivars and selecting more efficient rhizobial strains, this legume has the potential to achieve higher N(2) fixation rates under cultivation. The low variability in Cyclopia delta(15)N values within sites, however, suggests that genetic variability is not a major factor influencing N(2) fixation rates in cultivated Cyclopia, and that more benefit may be gained from soil amelioration and the selection of improved rhizobial strains.