A review of capsaicinoid extraction and quantification alternatives and their industrial application.

Abstract

The chili peppers belonging to Capsicum annuum family are products of great global importance due to their diverse applications and specifically the spicy flavor they give to food. This pungency is attributed to the presence of capsaicinoid compounds. These compounds are promising in the industry since they are used in the food, cosmetics, pharmaceutical, etc. sectors. For this reason, new alternatives are currently being sought to obtain capsaicinoids with the objective of achieving higher yields at lower costs and times, and that are also environmentally friendly. In this review, we emphasize the extraction and analytical methods for identifying and quantifying capsaicinoids and their applications in industry, also presenting various extraction and quantification techniques, highlighting that methods such as ultrasound and microwaves increase the yield in less time compared to conventional processes. It was proven that HPLC is a reliable, sensitive and fast technique for quantification, which is why it is the most used and recommended technique for the quantification of capsaicinoids.