Desert-grown superfood puts 'healthy' burgers on UAE menus

Issued on: 13/07/2022 – 03:44Modified: 13/07/2022 – 03:42

Dubai (United Arab Emirates) (AFP) – A hardy plant developed applying salt h2o is flourishing in the UAE’s desert farms and helping build “healthy” burgers, exhibiting sustainable agriculture’s likely in the hardest conditions.

Salicornia, a succulent, is previously currently being utilized as a salt substitution in burger patties — a scarce farming results in the oil-prosperous United Arab Emirates, which imports nearly all of its meals.

“You have the salty flavour with a lot less sodium, but you also have other added benefits,” said Tina Siegismund, head of advertising and innovation at UAE-based mostly World-wide Food Industries, a frozen food stuff maker.

The asparagus-like plant lowers sodium written content by 40 percent in the company’s healthier burgers, which also contain hen, quinoa and kale.

Salicornia plant-based burger patties are produced at a food processing plant in the Gulf emirate of Sharjah — Salicornia plant-centered burger patties are created at a food items processing plant in the Gulf emirate of Sharjah Karim SAHIB AFP

Indigenous to elements of North The united states, Europe, South Africa and South Asia, the plant is perfect for the UAE’s inhospitable local climate, and consists of anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory attributes, according to Siegismund.

Agriculture creates considerably less than one particular % of GDP in the UAE, a nation on the frontline of local climate improve with temperatures often topping 50 levels Celsius (122 Fahrenheit) and growing swiftly.

Salicornia cultivation began very last 12 months in a amount of farms throughout the UAE as section of an experiment using brine operate-off from desalination vegetation by the Dubai-dependent Global Centre for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA).

Augusto Becerra Lopez-Lavalle, chief scientist at ICBA, reported exploration was now underway into creating much more of the “high-value crop”, which sells for $20 a kilo (2.2 lbs) in France.

Salicornia cultivation began last year in a number of farms across the UAE — Salicornia cultivation commenced very last 12 months in a amount of farms across the UAE Karim SAHIB AFP

“We went from… developing this prototype, to piloting at scale with 8 farmers, and now the query is how to scale up,” Lopez-Lavalle instructed AFP.

In the long term, salicornia could “come to be a really important food items component” he additional.

“If there is an financial worth and the manufacturing process is formulated for this, it can grow to be a substitution for salt and any other micronutrients that are additional currently artificially to processed foods.”

For now, salicornia remains a market products, its health and fitness added benefits unfamiliar to most, admits Siegismund.

“It is really not a merchandise that can make significant, massive revenue, but we consider in it and we will carry on,” she stated.