Extraction line for the isolation of antioxidants from olive tree leaves

Kurzfassung

A Greek entrepreneurial development centre and an olive oil producer SME seek suitable small-scale equipment for the production of antioxidant-rich extracts from olive tree leaves. The company would be - mainly - interested in solutions already available on the market for a commercial agreement with technical assistance.

Details

Olive tree leaves (as well as the olives themselves) are a good source of antioxidant components. The major component is oleuropein, a glucosidic ester of elenolic acid and hydroxytyrosol, which exists in the olive tree leaves in relatively high amounts (about 70-90 mg/g of dry matter). A number of studies have attributed to oleuropein a very good antioxidant capacity.
A Greek SME from the olive oil sector is interested in setting up suitable small-scale extraction equipment to isolate the antioxidant-rich fraction from the leaves. Ideally, the company would prefer a complete solution, including the steps of leave treatment and the concentration/evaporation of the antioxidants extract solution.

Technical Specifications / Specific technical requirements:
- Small processing capacity - about 40 ton raw material per month; batch operation
- The solvents used should be suitable for food or pharma processes, and the process should leave the antioxidant content intact
- A fair (at least) degree of automation to allow for user-friendly operation and steady product characteristics
- The possibility to use different antioxidant sources (e.g., olive mill waste) would be an attractive characteristic
- A low cost suitable for an SME