There is no shortage of interest in black elderberry, with numerous products on the market ranging from syrups, capsules, even gummies. According the 2018 Herb Market Report issued by the American Botanical Council, sales of elderberry ingredients increased 35% in 2017, topping $19 million. But Melanie Bush, director of science and QC communications for Fort Wayne, IN-based Artemis, said the manufacturing process for the new ingredient, called ElderCraft, sets it apart and will help it capture a share of this thriving market.
Starting with premium raw material
The ingredient is manufactured with raw material taken from a premium strain of Austrian-grown black elderberries of the ‘Haschberg’ variety. It is manufactured by Italian ingredient supplier Iprona, which is just over the boarder in the South Tyrol district of Italy.
“As the name ‘craft’ suggests, great care and precision went into the development of an extraction process that , great care and precision went into the development of an extraction process that yields a ‘better elderberry,’” Bush told NutraIngredients-USA.
“Iprona, Artemis International’s partner manufacturing facility, was a pioneer with the solvent-free elderberry extraction technology and has over 20 years of experience with producing superior black elderberry extracts using this holistic membrane extraction process (now known as “IPT”—Iprona Polyphenol Technology),” she said.
Preserving the polyphenol matrix
The technology uses a series of filters that separate out the constituents of the berry juice based on molecule size. This allows the company to standardize the amount of polyphenols in the extract without the use of solvents and better helps preserve the polyphenol matrix, Bush said.
Bush said Iprona’s ingredient was featured in a compelling placebo controlled trial published in 2016 that showed that Iprona’s ingredient significantly reduced the length and severity of cold and flu symptoms when administered to subjects who were traveling.
Having a standardized extract means the product will deliver on the benefits found in the study, Bush said, rather than relying on general overall results for the botanical.
“Some products on the market can be cryptic or general with how the information about the elderberry ingredient is stated. Simply adding a small amount of a basic fruit powder, or even a juice concentrate does not deliver the same level of the anthocyanin actives as an actual standardized extract that provides guaranteed and consistent potency,” she said.
