An in vitro gastrointestinal human digestion model, with and without additional rapeseed oil, was used to measure the bioaccessibility of the major lipophilic nutrients enriched in chloroplasts: β-carotene; lutein; α-tocopherol; and α-linolenic acid. Chloroplast-rich fraction (CRF) material for this work was prepared from post-harvest pea vine field residue (pea vine haulm, or PVH), an abundant source of freely available, underutilised green biomass. PVH was either steam sterilised (100 °C for 4 min) and then juiced (heat-treated PVH, or HPVH), or was juiced fresh and the juice heated (90 °C for 3 min) (heat-treated juice, or HJ); the CRF from all biomass treatments was recovered from the juice by centrifugation. The impact of postharvest heat treatment of the biomass (HPVH), or of heat treatment of the juice (HJ) derived from the biomass, on the retention and bioaccessibility of the target nutrients was determined. The results showed that both heat treatments increased the apparent retention of β-carotene, lutein, α-tocopherol, and α-linolenic acid in the CRF material during digestion. The presence of edible oil during digestion did not dramatically affect the retention of these nutrients, but it did increase the bioaccessibility of β-carotene, lutein, and α-tocopherol from CRF material derived from heated biomass or juice. The presence of oil also increased the bioaccessibility of β-carotene, but not of lutein, α-tocopherol, or α-linolenic acid, from fresh CRF material.

Under the cash-crop category, sweet potato (Ipomoea Batatas L.) has the second widest plantation area (3, 623 hectares) in Malaysia, after sweet corn. The sweet potato crop had been grown for its edible tubers, leaving behind the top parts of the plants, which led to abundant agricultural waste, around 10 tonnes per hectare. Early studies showed that haulm (unused tops of the plants consisting of stem, stalk, and leaf) from sweet potato plants are a potential source of nutritional contents,including bioactive materials and antioxidants. Suppose the haulms or other fruit and vegetablewaste (FVW) are utilised as these nutrient sources benefit Malaysia in terms of consumption and economy, promoting agricultural sustainability. In this study, the sweet potato haulm undergoes slow-juicing, heat-treatment, and freeze-drying. This research focused on elucidating the physicochemical and anti-nutrients analysis of pasteurised and unpasteurised sweet potato haulm juice powder (SPHJP) (water activity, colour analysis, water solubility index, oxalic acid, and phytic acid) as a potentially edible product. Results significantly showed that pasteurised SPHJP had lower water activity (0.34 aw), lower anti-nutrients concentration (oxalic acid and phytic acid), and a higher water solubility index than the unpasteurised SPHJP (p<0.05). It is proven that heat treatment is crucial when utilizing green waste material, as it can reduce the availability of anti-nutrients and increase its potential as a replacement for other green vegetables. Further study must be conducted to convert this underutilised agricultural product into biofertilisers, bioplastics, biofuels, or nutraceutical products.

SOYGO is an energy bar that can be categorized as a meal replacement bar. SOYGO energy bar comes in a single-serving size and does not have to be refrigerated. As the name suggests, this SOYGO energy bar is made with soybean, the primary source of high-quality protein content. Moreover, this product is rich in ingredients that provide instant energy, and the convenience of energy bars makes them a perfect grab-and-go bite. Due to its high potential to be commercialized, this SOYGO Energy Bar product is registered as a Trade Secret (TS00132023) at Research and Innovation Management Centre (RIMC), Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia.