Aduna fortifies UK functional foods market with new hibiscus superfood powder

14 Jan 2021 --- Ingredient supplier and health food brand Aduna is releasing Hibiscus Superfood Powder to the UK market.

Made from dried Hibiscus sabdariffa flowers (Roselle), the organic powder can fortify food and beverages amid soaring consumer demand for functional, flavorsome and brightly colored ingredients.

While best known by Western consumers as a tea, hibiscus is a medicinal plant rich in nutrients, polyphenols and antioxidants, long prized in African countries for its health benefits.

“Aduna is focused primarily on health-conscious, active, educated urban dwellers who are part of the ‘wellness generation’, and most likely to be youthful women,” Andrew Hunt, co-founder and CEO of Aduna, explains to NutritionInsight. 

“While they are certainly seeking to improve their own well-being, they are also becoming more concerned with the well-being of others and the planet.”

Behind the powder R&D
Aduna’s Hibiscus contains fiber (33 percent), calcium (15 percent of the Nutrient Reference Value [NRV] /10 g), iron (21 percent NRV/10 g), plant protein (8 percent), polyphenols and antioxidants, supporting immunity, gut and skin health.

Aduna’s hibiscus powder is rich in fiber, calcium, iron and protein.The powder has a vibrant dark pink color, says Aduna, and a tart, rhubarb-like flavor. It can be used in a variety of applications including smoothies, sauces, syrups, yogurts, jams, breakfasts, ice creams, desserts and cakes. 

“At present, hibiscus is almost exclusively marketed and consumed [in the UK] as a tea, with the only powders out there being low quality products used for natural hair care,” explains Hunt. 

To Aduna’s knowledge, Hibiscus Superfood Powder is the first available as an organic, food grade format. 

Aduna Hibiscus Powder is made from Roselle fruit calyxes, which are deseeded, dried, sieved and ground into a fine powder, according to Hunt. Each batch undergoes rigorous microbial analysis and is organic certified by The Soil Association.

“The development of this ingredient was an arduous 12-month process with a lot of technical challenges to solve and will be time-consuming and expensive for others to replicate to this quality standard.”

Other Aduna powders products are made from moringa, baobab and super-cacao.Following the functional food path
The Hibiscus Superfood Powder arrives as the latest addition to Aduna’s broader superfood powder portfolio.

Last November, Aduna released organic moringa capsules amid increasing interest in the “super leaf” and soaring demand for immunity-boosting supplements. 

In 2019, Aduna also launched Fonio, an ancient African “super-grain” pegged by the company as the “new quinoa.” 

By Anni Schleicher