Global Anti Oxidants Market

Antioxidants are compounds capable of slowing or preventing the oxidation of other molecules. They are also known as free radical scavengers of the body for their ability to terminate chain oxidation reactions in two ways – by removing radical intermediates and by getting oxidized themselves. Antioxidants prevent rancidity in foods containing fats and damage to food caused by oxygen. Examples of antioxidants include vitamin C, vitamin E, BHA, BHT, and propyl gallate. Propyl gallate retards the spoilage of fats and oils and is often used with BHA and BHT, because of the synergistic effects.

Antioxidants are used as food preservatives to help guard against food deterioration. Exposure to oxygen and sunlight are the two main factors in the oxidation of food, so food is preserved by keeping in the dark and sealing it in containers or even coating it in wax, as with cucumbers. However, as oxygen is also important for plant respiration, storing plant materials in anaerobic conditions produces unpleasant flavors and unappealing colors. Consequently, packaging of fresh fruits and vegetables contains a ~8% oxygen atmosphere. Antioxidants are especially important class of preservatives as, unlike bacterial or fungal spoilage, oxidation reactions still occur relatively rapidly in frozen or refrigerated food. These preservatives include natural antioxidants such as ascorbic acid (E300) and tocopherols (E306), as well as synthetic antioxidants such as propyl gallate (E310), tertiary butyl hydroquinone (TBHQ), butylated hydroxyanisole (E320) and butylated hydroxy-toluene (E321).

Antioxidants are widely used as preservatives, since the oxidation process that breaks down various fats and other chemicals in food can also cause the food's color, taste and texture to deteriorate. While previous studies have demonstrated rosemary extracts to be an effective antioxidant, the current study also looked at the effectiveness of extracts of broccoli sprouts, citrus and seed oils by measuring the rate at which high oleic sunflower oil broke down when mixed with the various extracts.

Good sources of Vitamin C or ascorbic acid are fruit and vegetables like green bell pepper, orange, strawberry and papaya. For Vitamin E (tocopherols and tocotrienols), vegetable oils, seeds and nuts are some good sources. Polyphenolic antioxidants (Resveratrol and Flavonoids) are best sourced from green tea, chocolate, coffee, soy, oregano and Yerba Mate, to name a few). Fruits and vegetables like Carrots are the best sources of carotenoids (Lycopene and Carotene). Brazil nuts are the best source of selenium. Vitamin E is also used to fortify some breakfast cereals and pet foods. To protect fats or oils from oxidation, a fat-soluble ester of ascorbic acid known as ascorbyl palmitate is used.

Antioxidants are used in a wide range of food products such as meat, poultry, fats, oils, margarines, fish, seafood, and baked foods to inhibit the break-down of fats and oils. The market is currently dominated by synthetic preservatives such as BHT and BHA. These are starting to be replaced by natural preservatives such as rosemary, tea extracts, tocopherols and ascorbate. However, the current natural preservatives can be expensive which limits their broader use in foods, leading to continued use of the synthetic preservatives.

MarketsandMarkets proposes to use secondary as well as primary sources for researching the global markets for Anti-oxidants market in different applications. Various secondary sources such as annual reports, magazines, and databases will be used to identify and collect information useful for this extensive technical and commercial assessment. The primary sources –experts from related industries and suppliers will be interviewed to obtain and verify required information to confirm the accuracy. The collected information will be presented in the form of detailed research report.