Abstract Several works have shown different aspects of the use of the plant Moringa oleifera. However, few review studies bring an approach to its use in food preparation, specifying its role as a functional food and its use as a natural additive, focusing on food biochemistry and including sensory acceptance and safety. Composed by multiple bioactive substances, Moringa oleifera has the potential to be used as a food additive, mainly as a preservative with the potential to prevent lipid oxidation and other unwanted chemical reactions that lead to product deterioration. Furthermore, it can improve the physicochemical characteristics of food, increasing its quality and shelf life. It also promotes nutritional improvement, elevating protein, mineral, and vitamin levels. Despite this, the sensorial characteristics of this plant result in a low consumer acceptance of the fortified products, which is a problem for the food industry. Apart from inconclusive works, some data involving Moringa’s safety are contradictory, resulting in its commercialization prohibition in Brazil in 2019. This review focused on important data about Moringa use to contribute to the literature and to the food industry, describing information about this medicinal plant effects on food products.

ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to determine the composition and antioxidant potential of leaves of a new variety of Stevia rebaudiana (Stevia UEM-13). Stevia leaves of UEM-13 contain rebaudioside A as the main glycoside, while most wild Stevia plants contain stevioside. Furthermore can be multiplied by seed, which reduces the cost of plant culture techniques as other clonal varieties are multiplied by buds, requiring sophisticated and expensive seedling production systems. Ethanol and methanol were used in the extraction to determine the bioactive compounds. The methanolic extract was fractionated sequentially with hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate and isobutanol, and the highest concentration of phenolic compounds and flavonoids was obtained in the ethyl acetate fraction (524.20 mg galic acid equivalent/g; 380.62 µg quercetin equivalent/g). The glycoside content varied greatly among the fractions (0.5% - 65.3%). Higher antioxidant potential was found in the methanol extract and the ethyl acetate fraction with 93.5% and 97.32%, respectively. In addition to being an excellent source for obtaining of extracts rich in glycoside, this new variety can also be used as raw material for the production of extracts or fractions with a significant amount of antioxidant activity and potential to be used as additives in food.