Marula vinegar produced from waste by-products was found to be a potential source of health promoting compounds including total phenolics and flavonoids with good antioxidant properties.
Marula is a well-known indigenous plant in South Africa, and the fruit is used to make the legendary Amarula cream liquor.
Molelekoa and colleagues investigated the feasibility of using marula fruit waste sourced from a processing plant as feedstock for vinegar (acetic acid) production. They used two fermentation techniques (surface and submerged culture methods) using both naturally occurring and inoculated bacteria. The surface culture method combined with inoculation produced a higher-quality vinegar with potential for commercial-scale production. A consumer survey recommended the application of the vinegar in products such as salad dressing and mayonnaise.