China is one of the leading global producers of garlic, accounting for approximately 25% of the world's total output. A significant portion of the garlic consumed in Japan and Southeast Asian countries comes from China, with over 80% of their supply sourced from there. Traditionally, China has focused on exporting fresh garlic, while deep processing of garlic into value-added products remains limited, resulting in relatively low economic returns. In contrast, countries like the United States, the United Kingdom, and Japan have long emphasized the deep processing of garlic, particularly in the development of pharmaceuticals. Research has shown that garlic possesses significant pharmacological properties, including antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and cardiovascular benefits, which have increased its global appeal. As a result, the development of garlic-based products has become a growing trend.
Currently, garlic is not only used in traditional forms such as injections, tablets, powders, and capsules but also in various functional food products. With the advancement of modern medicine and changing health trends, garlic has proven to be an important natural resource in human health development. The transformation of garlic from raw produce to processed forms like garlic flakes, garlic sauce, garlic powder, and even garlic oil and allicin has expanded its market potential significantly. Among these, supercritical COâ‚‚ extraction technology has emerged as a key innovation in garlic processing, making it a hot topic in recent years.
Garlic contains more than 30 volatile compounds, primarily sulfur-containing substances such as diallyl trisulfide, diallyl disulfide, methallyl trisulfide, and allyl sulfide. Fresh garlic itself is odorless, but when crushed, sliced, or chewed, the cell walls break down, releasing alliin. This compound is then converted into allicin by the enzyme alliinase in the presence of oxygen, producing the characteristic garlic smell. Allicin, however, is highly unstable and degrades quickly at room temperature or when exposed to heat. This makes its extraction and preservation challenging.
Allicin constitutes about 0.18% to 0.5% of fresh garlic and is considered the primary bioactive compound responsible for garlic’s fresh flavor. Its concentration is often used as an indicator of garlic oil quality. Traditional methods for extracting garlic oil include steam distillation, solvent extraction, and supercritical CO₂ extraction. Among these, supercritical CO₂ extraction offers superior stability, higher yield, and better preservation of active components, making it the preferred method in modern garlic processing.
Supercritical CO₂ fluid extraction is an advanced separation technology that has gained widespread application in the food and pharmaceutical industries. It operates under mild conditions without leaving harmful residues, preserving the natural properties of the original material. This technology was highlighted as a key innovation during China’s “10th Five-Year Plan.†In this project, garlic is first extracted using ethanol to obtain a concentrated garlic solution, which is then purified using supercritical CO₂. This combined approach allows for efficient and continuous extraction and purification of allicin, maintaining its potency and quality.
The process involves peeling and slicing garlic bulbs, soaking them in ethanol, and separating the extract. The ethanol-extracted garlic liquid contains 1.2–2.2 mg of allicin per milliliter. This solution is then introduced into a high-pressure extraction vessel, where supercritical CO₂ is used to extract allicin. After extraction, the CO₂ is recovered through a series of pressure reduction steps. The final product achieves an extraction efficiency of over 92%, with allicin purity reaching up to 84%. This method ensures the retention of garlic’s natural aroma and active ingredients.
In terms of investment and economic benefits, the project aims to produce 250 kg of allicin (50% concentration) annually, with a total investment of 10 million yuan. Of this, 6 million yuan is allocated to fixed assets, and 4 million yuan is for working capital. If only semi-finished allicin is sold without further processing into capsules, the annual output value could reach around 50 million yuan, with profits and taxes estimated at approximately 30 million yuan. This highlights the strong economic potential of garlic deep processing, especially with the adoption of advanced technologies like supercritical COâ‚‚ extraction.
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