Black carrot compounds, processing and health effects
What it found
Black carrots are rich in anthocyanins and other phenolic compounds, and extracts have shown antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-diabetic and anti-cancer activity in lab tests.
The paper also reviews how drying, microwaves, ultrasound and other processing methods affect these compounds.
What they found
Animal and lab studies
Antioxidant activity
In lab tests, black carrot extracts showed high antioxidant activity, and this was attributed to their high polyphenol content. The authors report that black carrots had more antioxidant activity than orange carrots in the studies reviewed.
Anti-cancer effects in cells
In cell studies, black carrot phenolic compounds inhibited the growth of colorectal cancer cells in a dose-dependent way. Lyophilised black carrot anthocyanin powder at 0 to 2.0 mg per mL inhibited 80% of cancer cell growth in HT-29 and HL-60 cells.
Anti-inflammatory effects
In lab tests on endothelial cells, polyphenols from black carrot and its by-products reduced the secretion of pro-inflammatory markers. The authors note that the bioactivity depends on how well these compounds are absorbed by the body.
Other findings
Anthocyanins and colour
Black carrots get their deep purple colour from anthocyanins, which are water-soluble pigments. The paper reports about 350 mg of anthocyanin per 100 g, and more than half of these anthocyanins have an acylated structure that makes them unusually heat stable.
Phenolic content
Black carrots contain over 40 different phenolic acids, with 5-O-caffeoylquinic acid as the main one. Chlorogenic acid made up 30% of all phenolics in one analysis, and black carrots had the highest level among the carrot genotypes tested.
Drying and compound retention
Freeze drying retained the most total phenols and aromatic compounds in black carrot pomace compared to other drying methods. Conductive hydro drying was faster and retained 23,655 micrograms per kg of volatile compounds.
What the authors conclude
- They say that freeze drying can be effective in making bioactive and volatile compounds more accessible, beyond its use in encapsulation.
- They call for more research to optimise and explore hot air assisted radio frequency drying for better retention of bioactive and volatile compounds.
- They suggest that future work should focus on scaling up microwave technology to the industrial level to improve extraction efficiency and reduce production cost.
How it was done
The authors wanted to summarise what is known about the bioactive compounds in black carrots and their health value, and to review the technologies used to process them into stable, value-added products.
The authors reviewed published studies on the nutritional and bioactive composition of black carrots, their reported health effects, and the effects of different processing methods such as drying, microwaving, ultrasound, high pressure and irradiation on those compounds.
What it can’t tell you
- Many of the health effects described come from lab tests on cells or from animal studies, so they cannot show what happens in people.
- The paper does not report human trials testing whether eating black carrots prevents cancer, heart disease or diabetes.
- The review describes associations and lab findings, not cause and effect in people.
Who paid
- Conflicts
- Conflict of interestNo conflict of interest is declared by author and co-authors.
- Authors work at
- Dr. Yashwant Singh Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Himachal Pradesh India; Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, Italy
The paper
- Title
- Insights into the current status of bioactive value, postharvest processing opportunities and value addition of black carrot
- Type
- ReviewThe authors read earlier studies and describe what they found. It isn’t a new study.
- Evidence
- Animals and lab studies
- Summarised from
- Full text
- Cite
- Thakur P, Anika, Suhag R, Dhiman A, Kumar S (2024). Insights into the current status of bioactive value, postharvest processing opportunities and value addition of black carrot. Food science and biotechnology. doi:10.1007/s10068-023-01436-5PubMed 38371691DOI
Summary written 30 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error