Events Diary
Edible Flowers: When Chemistry Meets Food Innovation
Edible flowers are gaining increasing attention as sustainable ingredients that combine natural colour, flavour and bioactive compounds. Beyond their aesthetic appeal, many species are rich in anthocyanins and other phytochemicals with potential health benefits, making them promising candidates for the development of innovative functional foods.
This webinar will provide an overview of the growing scientific interest inedible flowers, from their chemical composition, food safety and sensory properties to their potential applications in food systems. Particular attention will be given to the butterfly pea flower (Clitoria ternatea), a unique source of highly acylated anthocyanins known as ternatins, which are responsible for its remarkable natural blue colour and exceptional stability.
The talk will present findings from the FLOWERWISE PhD project, exploring how the structural complexity of these pigments influences their stability, digestive behaviour and intestinal absorption. Finally, opportunities and challenges associated with incorporating edible flowers into innovative and sustainable food products will be discussed.
Margarida Teixeira is a PhD student in Sustainable Chemistry at the University of Porto, currently developing the FCT-funded PhD project FLOWERWISE, which investigates anthocyanin-rich edible flowers as sustainable ingredients for functional foods. Her research focuses on the chemistry, stability, bioaccessibility and bioavailability of edible flower anthocyanins, with particular emphasis on butterfly pea flower and other edible flowers rich in acylated anthocyanins. She holds a BSc in Biochemistry from the University of Coimbra and an MSc in Biochemistry from the University of Porto, Portugal. Since beginning her research on edible flowers, she has published three first-author journal articles, including are view article, contributed as first author to a book chapter, and presented her work at several national and international conferences. Her research has been recognised with several awards, most recently the Early Career Flower Award from the British Society of Flavourists and the Best Oral Communication Award at the 12th International Workshop on Anthocyanins & Betalains for her research on butterfly pea flower anthocyanins.