• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
• /
• v.44 no.5
• /
• pp.709-715
• /
• 2015

As consumers interest in microgreens is increasing worldwide, the production of leafy microgreens uisng different LED lights was investigated in this study. The experiment was carried out to evaluate the effects of different LED lights on the composition and vitamin C contents of buckwheat microgreens. Physicochemical properties of buckwheat microgreens grown under different lights (red, blue, and white) and control exposed to a dark room were investigated. Moisture contents of buckwheat microgreens were 95.65% under white light (WL), 95.75% under blue light (BL), 90.77% under red light (RL), and 89.71% under dark room (DR). Crude ash contents of buckwheat microgreens grown under WL, DR, RL, and BL were 0.39%, 0.39%, 0.31%, and 0.37%, respectively. Crude protein contents of buckwheat microgreens grown under DR, RL, WL, and BL were 7.12%, 7.81%, 1.60%, and 2.40%, respectively. Crude fat contents of buckwheat microgreens grown under DR, BL, RL, and WL were 1.12%, 0.54%, 0.35%, and 0.22%, respectively. $^{\circ}Brix$ was the highest in microgreens grown under BL and RL and the lowest in buds grown under DR. Vitamin C content was the highest in buds grown under WL and the lowest in buds grown under BL. Total chlorophyll content was the highest in microgreens grown under RL and the lowest in buds grown under WL. For mineral content measurement of buckwheat microgreens, Ca, K, Mg, and P contents were high whereas B, Cu, and Zn contents were not detected. The mineral contents of buckwheat microgreens according to each color of light showed significant differences. These results demonstrated that treatment of different colored LED lights during cultivation was able to increase vitamin C content up to affecting the nutritional value of buckwheat microgreens.

• Journal of the FoodService Safety
• /
• v.2 no.2
• /
• pp.84-90
• /
• 2021

This study was performed to assess the microbiological quality and safety of microgreen sampled from harvesting farms and food processing plant in Korea. The samples were analyzed for total viable counts, coliforms, Enterobacteriaceae, Escherichia coli, Salmonella spp., Listeria monocytogenes, Vibrio parahaemolyticus, Bacillus cereus, and Staphylococcus aureus. Total viable counts were highly contaminated in samples collected from farms (7.7~8.2 log CFU/g) and the final products (5.8~7.8 log CFU/g), respectively. B. cereus was detected less than 100 CFU/g, which was satisfied with Korean standards (<1,000 CFU/g) of fresh-cut produce. A predictive model was developed for the changes of total viable counts in microgreens during storage at 5~35℃. The predictive models were developed using the Baranyi model for the primary model and the square root model for the secondary model. The results obtained in this study can be useful to develop the safety management options along the food chain, including fresh-cut produce storage and distribution.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
• /
• v.50 no.6
• /
• pp.581-586
• /
• 2018

Enterococcus spp. have been considered major indicator organisms for antibiotic resistance due to their ability to easily acquire and to harbor antibiotic resistance. In this study, Enterococcus spp. were isolated from 174 retail fresh-cut products (fresh vegetable salads, microgreens, and sprouts) in Korea. Among the 20 Enterococcus isolates obtained, 18 (90.0%) were Enterococcus faecalis and 2 (10.0%) were Enterococcus faecium. The patterns of antibiotic resistance against nine antimicrobials were analyzed. Most of the isolates (85.0%) were resistant to quinupristin/dalfopristin, 40.0% and 50.0% of the isolates showed intermediate resistance to two critically important antimicrobials for human medicine, ciprofloxacin and erythromycin, respectively. Vancomycin-resistant enterococci were not detected in this study. Given the importance of antimicrobial resistance of enterococci in food safety as well as in public health, our results regarding the occurrence (level of contamination) and antimicrobial resistance of Enterococcus spp. could provide useful information that aids the risk analysis of antibiotic resistance.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
• /
• v.31 no.7
• /
• pp.569-577
• /
• 2022

This study aimed to evaluate the growth of Cichorium intybus, Brassica juncea, and Lactuca sativa at varying seed ratios, and to suggest an efficient management plan for sustainable indoor agriculture systems. It was treated with mixed sowing as follows: 30 chicory seeds (chicory alone: CC), 22 chicory seeds + 8 lettuce seeds (C₃L₁), 20 chicory seeds + 10 lettuce seeds (C₂L₁), 15 chicory seeds + 15 lettuce seeds (C₁L₁) as intraspecies, and 30 mustard seeds (mustard alone: MC), 22 mustard seeds + 8 lettuce seeds (M₃L₁), 20 mustard seeds + 10 lettuce seeds (M₂L₁), 15 mustard seeds + 15 lettuce seeds (M₁L₁) as interspecies. The study identified the competitive response in seed germination between Cichorium intybus and Lactuca sativa, and in the C₃L₁ experimental group, Lactuca sativa had the highest leaf length, root length, chlorophyll content, and fresh weight. Therefore, the higher the ratio of Cichorium intybus, the higher the growth and productivity of Lactuca sativa; however, higher the ratio of Lactuca sativa, the lower the growth of Cichorium intybus. Furthermore, the nitrogen and potassium content in the substrate was the highest in the C₃L₁ experimental grorp which had the highest seeding rate of the Cichorium intybus. Comparing the groups Brassica juncea and Lactuca sativa, the higher the seeding ratio of Lactuca sativa, the higher the growth and productivity of Brassica juncea. Therefore, a companion seeding of Brassica juncea and Lactuca sativa is beneficial; this could be effective in having a high seeding ratio of Lactuca sativa.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
• /
• v.48 no.3
• /
• pp.193-200
• /
• 2021

Barley (Hordeum vulgare cv. Hangmaeg) sprouts are important microgreens that contain high levels of polyphenols and flavonoids, as well as minerals, vitamin and chlorophyll. Barley sprouts were grown for 9 days and growth was checked every 3 days. In this study, the cultivation efficiency according to the nutrient solution treatment was evaluated by analyzing the length of barley sprouts, fresh weight, chlorophyll, and the yield by growth period. In addition, we tried to increase the industrial applicability of germinated barley through analysis of inorganic component, total polyphenol and total flavonoid content of the extract, and functional substance analysis using HPLC. As a result, the growth rate of the nutrient solution treatment group was faster than that of the control group. When harvested on the 9th day of sowing, the nutrient solution treatment group showed a significant increase in yield compared to the control group. And the barley sprout extract of the nutrient solution treatment group had higher total flavonoid content and luteolin content. Also, the efficiency of water was higher than that of ethanol when extracting phenolics from barley sprouts. Therefore, this study suggests that nutrient input is effective for increasing polyphenol content and increasing production in barley sprout hydroponics.