Research noteCarotenoids and chlorophylls in processed xanthophyll-rich food

- Xanthophylls are sensitive towards thermal processing.
- High pressure processing is a good alternative to heat steam sterilization.
- Common household cooking of spinach preserves the amounts of xanthophylls.

Processing of food modifies nutrient contents and food matrices. The present analyses provide information about the effects of heat steam sterilization (HSS), high pressure processing (HPP) and common household cooking on the stability of carotenoids and chlorophylls in spinach, parsley, dill and kale. For HSS, samples were heated in an autoclave for 5, 10, 15 and 20 min at 121 °C. Additionally, one sample was treated via HPP at 200, 400 and 600 MPa for 5, 10 and 40 min at room temperature. Carotenoid and chlorophyll contents were determined by reversed-phase HPLC. Lutein was the most abundant carotenoid in all samples. Furthermore, violaxanthin, zeaxanthin, β-carotene, chlorophylls a and b were quantified. Thermal treatment via HSS led to a significant decline of contents of lutein, chlorophylls a and b. HPP did not reduce the amounts of xanthophylls and chlorophylls. Conclusively, HPP seems to be a good alternative to HSS for the preservation of xanthophyll-rich food.