Omne Ignotum pro Magnifico: characterization of commercial Bilberry extracts to fight adulteration

Abstract

Thanks to their chemical composition, extracts from the bilberry are commonly used to manufacture food, health products, supplements and cosmetics. However, in this field, as in others, "the process is the product" and a careful characterization of the entire supply and production chain, from purity and quality of raw material to extraction procedures needs to be implemented by using validated, sensitive and specific techniques of analysis. This position paper discusses the importance of the characterization of bilberry extracts, in order to fight adulteration.