Production of dry encapsulated forms of anthocyanins from tulip petals with high antioxidant activity and their utilization in lipsticks.Anthocyanins (of the Greek anthos = flower and kianos = blue) are the most important pigments of the plants. These pigments are responsible of the shiny orange, pink, red, violet and blue colors in the flowers and fruits of some plants. The most interesting substances of the waste material are anthocyanins as natural water soluble antioxidants with a great health benefit besides the coloring properties. Tulip is a perennial bulbous plant which is popular worldwide and especially in the Holland due to the showy flowers of the great variety of colors and shades. It was found that for flowers of different colors biosynthesis of anthocyanins of the three anthocyanidin backbones may occur. Thus, pelargonidin (Pg), cyanidin (Cy) and delphinidin (Dp) derivatives, are responsible for tulip flowers color.
This paper presents the results of the research project ‘Going Eco, Going Dutch’ (2015- 2017), which investigated the production, design and branding of fashion textiles made from locally produced hemp fibers in the Netherlands. For fashion labels and designers it is often difficult to scrutinize the production of textile fabrics manufactured in non-European countries due to physical distance and, often, non-transparency. At the same time, many designers and established fashion brands increasingly search for sustainable textiles that could be recycled or upcycled after being used by consumers. For the project ‘Going Eco, Going Dutch’, local textile manufacturers and fashion brands closely collaborated to explore how to develop fashionable textiles made from locally produced hemp – from the very first fiber to the final branding of the fashion product. In addition to the technical insights on the production of hemp, this paper will present and highlight the importance of the visual identity of the textiles, which was created by using Dutch traditional crafts – suggesting that this should be understood in terms of Kristine Harper’s ‘aesthetic sustainability’ (2017) as an essential design strategy. In addition, this paper will reflect on the importance of storytelling by focusing on locality and transparency, and on creating an emotional bond and connection between producer, product and consumer. This paper will argue that this form of ‘emotional durability’ (Chapman, 2005, 2009) is essential to both design and branding strategies. Moreover, this paper will critically reflect on the performance of Dutchness – Dutch national identity – through these locally produced fibers, textiles and fashion products.
MULTIFILE
Chemical preservation is an important process that prevents foods, personal care products, woods and household products, such as paints and coatings, from undesirable change or decomposition by microbial growth. To date, many different chemical preservatives are commercially available, but they are also associated with health threats and severe negative environmental impact. The demand for novel, safe, and green chemical preservatives is growing, and this process is further accelerated by the European Green Deal. It is expected that by the year of 2050 (or even as soon as 2035), all preservatives that do not meet the ‘safe-by-design’ and ‘biodegradability’ criteria are banned from production and use. To meet these European goals, there is a large need for the development of green, circular, and bio-degradable antimicrobial compounds that can serve as alternatives for the currently available biocidals/ preservatives. Anthocyanins, derived from fruits and flowers, meet these sustainability goals. Furthermore, preliminary research at the Hanze University of Applied Science has confirmed the antimicrobial efficacy of rose and tulip anthocyanin extracts against an array of microbial species. Therefore, these molecules have the potential to serve as novel, sustainable chemical preservatives. In the current project we develop a strategy consisting of fractionation and state-of-the-art characterization methods of individual anthocyanins and subsequent in vitro screening to identify anthocyanin-molecules with potent antimicrobial efficacy for application in paints, coatings and other products. To our knowledge this is the first attempt that combines in-depth chemical characterization of individual anthocyanins in relation to their antimicrobial efficacy. Once developed, this strategy will allow us to single out anthocyanin molecules with antimicrobial properties and give us insight in structure-activity relations of individual anthocyanins. Our approach is the first step towards the development of anthocyanin molecules as novel, circular and biodegradable non-toxic plant-based preservatives.
