Novel botanical ingredients for beverages

Variation in the anthocyanin concentration of wild populations of crowberries (Empetrum nigrum L subsp. hermaphroditum)

Crowberry (Empetrum nigrum L.) is a relatively under-utilized wild berry that occurs widely throughout the northern hemisphere such as in Canada, Eurasia, and northern Europe. In this work, the anthocyanins of crowberries were analyzed from four geographically distinct crowberry populations in Finland using HPLC-DAD and HPLC-ESI/MS/MS. A total number of 15 anthocyanins were detected; 15 (11 structure elucidated) in all samples in order to profile-specific anthocyanin compositions throughout Finland. The major anthocyanin found in the samples collected from central and eastern Finland was delphinidin 3-galactoside accounting for more than 24% of the total anthocyanin content, while the cyanidin 3-galactoside was the major anthocyanin in the northernmost and in the western samples. Significant variation in the concentrations of different anthocyanins between and within crowberry populations were found suggesting that the synthesis of anthocyanins is modified by site-specific environmental conditions. The suitability of the crowberries as a potential source of health-promoting ingredients for incorporation into pharmaceutical and food industrial products is highlighted in this work due to the diverse anthocyanin profile.