During our monthly Long Island Food Council meetings, we open the floor to entrepreneurs with Food or Beverage products. At our May meeting we had the pleasure of meeting Victoria Akkari and her unique Organic Culinary Argan Oil. Victoria was recently featured in an issue of Edible Long Island, but you can read more about her here.Everyone has fallen in love with the beauty benefits of cosmetic argan oil but did you know that you can eat it?
Argan oil is edible when the kernels are roasted creating a powerful superfood when taken internally.
Here are a few health benefits you should know about:
-It contains 80% unsaturated fatty acids (oleic and linoleic acid) which help lower LDL or bad cholesterol
-Polyphenols, tocopherols and sterols in argan oil are:
-Anti-oxidants that prevent disease
-Anti-diabetic by reducing blood glucose levels and hypertension
-Anti-proliferate or have the ability to prevent the spread of malignant cells through sterols schottenol and spinasterol
-Vitamin E levels are double the amount found in olive oil and fight free-radicals by helping repair cell damage
-Anti-inflammatory (carotenoids) help reduce chronic inflammation
The bonus is that argan oil tastes great and can be used exactly like olive oil! Also, by working directly with our Women’s Cooperative in Morocco, rural women have the ability to earn a fair income.
