Gourmet microgreens: Tiny plants can help tackle nutrition challenges, flags study

Harvesting microgreens grown in a kitchen (All image credits: Francesco Di Gioia).

01 Oct 2021 --- Microgreens packed with antioxidants compounds are gaining popularity as a functional food, according to new research. A US study reveals how these tiny but mighty plants could unlock nutrition challenges, including being used as an emergency resource in catastrophe situations, or even food for long-term space missions. 

Microgreens are typically viewed as high-value gourmet greens, commonly used by chefs to add aesthetical value to dishes or culinary preparation.

“The interesting thing about microgreens is that we can use a variety of species from different botanical families and characterized by different colors, taste, and textures,” team leader Francesco Di Gioia, assistant professor of vegetable crop science at College of Agricultural Sciences, Penn State, US, tells FoodIngredientsFirst.

This mix can provide a rich variety of phytonutrients that have antioxidant and bioactive properties.

“Our study shows that depending on the species or botanical family, microgreens can provide vitamins A, C, E, and K, polyphenols, glucosinolates and omega 3 fatty acids, especially alpha-linolenic acid. This is besides being a good source of fibers and minerals.” 

Microgreens are highly dense young shoots from sprouting seeds of vegetables and grains.These compounds can also be obtained when consuming full-size standard vegetables. However, microgreens can be self-produced in limited space and time, as well as harvested fresh in household kitchens without any processing or cooking. 

“These aspects are particularly important because consuming fresh greens raw will provide higher bioavailability of the bioactive compounds compared to cooked or processed vegetables and food products,” Di Gioia maintains.

Costly production?
The COVID-19 pandemic revealed the vulnerability of the global food system and the need to address malnutrition issues and nutrition-security inequality, which potential future emergencies or catastrophes could exacerbate. Here, nutrient-dense microgreens have great potential as an efficient food-resilience resource.

“Microgreens are already produced commercially at small, medium and large scale. The main production costs are represented by seeds, cultivation substrates and the facilities to grow microgreens in hygienically safe environments,” Di Gioia explains.

“Like any other crops, production costs can vary depending on location and technology used, but in general, starting a business with microgreens at small scale does not require a big initial investment. Scaling up the business will require larger investments.” 

Consumers can even grow microgreens at home using simple kitchen tools. A grower would require seeds, growing trays and a growth medium, consisting of a common peat and perlite growth mix.

Depending on the species and growing conditions, microgreens’ cycle from sowing to harvest may range from 6 to 28 days. As microgreens may be used as functional food to enhance nutrition security under emergency situations, Di Gioia suggests microgreen production kits including seeds could be prepared and stored, then made available when needed.

Inspiration for other researchers
The study was published in Acta Horticulturae, the journal of the International Society for Horticultural Science. 

A lot of research is ongoing in microgreens, says Di Gioia, with researchers addressing many aspects from production to microbial safety. “But certainly one of the most interesting aspects to investigate about microgreens is their nutritional profile.”

Last year, NASA researchers spoke with NutritionInsight about their space-grown red romaine lettuce, which is free of disease-causing microbes, safe to eat and at least as nutritious as Earth-grown plants.

Back on Earth, however, malnutrition continues to present a serious problem, costing businesses up to US$850 billion. A UN report last year called upon governments and other parties to undertake urgent measures to radically transform food systems to ensure endemic food security and nutrition. 

By Anni Schleicher

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