Don’t throw away your unwanted apples.
How many apples are dumped every year in Israel because of the appearance? The waste is estimated at some 15,000 metric tons, or about 10 percent of the country’s annual yield, according to the report, which amounts to over NIS 25 million in lost income every year.
Israeli scientists have found a way to repurpose unwanted and damaged apples that would otherwise go to waste into a “superfood powder” aimed at being a healthier alternative to sugar and a nutritional supplement.
Dr. Ofir Benjamin from Tel Chai Academic College and Professor Raffi Stern from MIGAL – Galilee Research Institute of the Galilee Development Authority in northern Israel produced a powder from second – and third-rate apples that is freeze-dried and to which small amounts of milk powder is added to prevent crystallization, the Tazpit Press Service (TPS) first reported in a Jewish Press article.
The powder has 600mg of vitamin C per 100 grams, has no food coloring or preservatives and is rich in antioxidants and nutritional fiber, according to the researchers. It is intended as a healthy sweetener for soft drinks and a supplement.
“We went to Bereshit, one of the major apple producers in the country, and took samples of different kind of apples: second and third grade as well as apples designated for grocery shops and we found there is no difference between the powder produced with first choice apples and second and third grade apples,” he added.
With the new discovery, he said, “now apple growers will be able to take advantage of fruit that otherwise would have gone to waste.”
Reference: No Camels Team (2018, February 14). Looking For Love: Israeli Researchers Turn Unwanted Apples Into ‘Superfood’. Retrieved from http://nocamels.com/2018/02/unwanted-apples-become-superfood/
