Development of a functional drink based on coffee by employing nanotechnological resources

• Grant number: 18/08611-2
• Support Opportunities: Research Grants - Innovative Research in Small Business - PIPE
• Start date: April 01, 2019
• End date: March 31, 2020
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Food Science and Technology - Food Technology
• Principal Investigator: Fernanda Rebel Moreira Alves
• Grantee: Fernanda Rebel Moreira Alves
• Company: Fernanda Rebel Moreira Alves
• CNAE: Fabricação de produtos à base de café
• City: Ribeirão Preto
• Associated researchers: Alceu Afonso Jordão Junior ; Andresa Aparecida Berretta e Silva ; Franciane Marquele de Oliveira ; Paula Garcia Chiarello
• Associated scholarship(s): 19/17630-3 - Evaluation of functional activity in vitro, BP.TT; 19/10857-2 - Evaluation of functional activity in vivo, BP.TT

Abstract

Coffee is the most consumed drink in the world, followed only by water. In Brazil, 49,640 million bags of coffee are produced annually (60kg / bag), of which 83% corresponds to arabica coffee. The per capita consumption in Brazil is 4.89 kg / inhabitant / year of roasted and ground coffee, and 6.12 kg of coffee beans. Amount that generates an annual consumption of 20,5 million of coffee / year. The consumption of the beverage remained stagnant until the entrance of the "gourmet" coffees, giving a new jump after the entrance of the coffee makers with metallic capsules. The coffee powder and soluble corresponds to 90% of the coffee consumed in Brazil. A recent research by Nielsen pointed out the need to innovate in the segment, communicate the benefits of the beverage, as well as, it showed that taste comes as the first item when choosing the product, followed by the price and associated benefit. Ginseng is one of the most studied phytotherapics in Asia, a millenarian plant, with thousands of scientific studies demonstrating a series of biological effects, of which the adaptogen, anti-stress, antioxidant and other effects deserve special mention. Ginseng presents low availability to the ginsenosides, and residual bitter / spicy taste. The coffee-ginseng blend first emerged in Korea as a strategy to boost stagnant ginseng sales. However, simple coffee blends with ginseng powder were used, followed by grain coating technologies. The Brazilian market already has two companies operating in the coffee-based functional beverages segment, but both focus on thermogenic beverages, which are focused on weight loss. The present proposal aims to obtain coffee-ginseng powder (phase 1) and soluble (phase 2) as a functional beverage, and for this, nanoencapsulation of ginsenosides in inclusion complexes with cyclodextrin will be performed. The strategy aims to improve the performance of ginseng, with lower concentrations of the extract in the coffee, besides also masking the bitter / spicy taste. Some "formulations" will be made for the mixture, which will be evaluated for the sensorial, critical stage for the project. Once some compositions are defined, they will be evaluated for preliminary safety and efficacy, in in vitro and in vivo models, for antioxidant effect. It is intended to obtain a ginseng extract with greater bioavailability and masked taste; coffee-ginseng powders and coffee-soluble ginseng, properly characterized regarding the chemical composition, safety, effectiveness, and stability. (AU)