Sea buckthorn oil

Sea buckthorn oil is derived from plants in a group of species of the genus Hippophae, the most commonly used of which is Hippophae rhamnoides. As species belonging to this genus accumulate lipids in the mesocarp (the fleshy part of the fruit), oil can be extracted from either the seeds or the pulp of the fruit.

Chemical constituents

Oil content in seeds of sea buckthorn is on average 7-11 % while oil content of pulp is around 1.5-3 % (per fresh weight). Seed oil is characterized with high contents of polyunsaturated fatty acids while pulp oil contains monounsaturated fatty acids and carotenoids. Both oils also contain dense amounts of tocopherols, tocotrienols and plant sterols.

Fatty acids

Oils from sea buckthorn seeds and pulp differ considerably in fatty acid composition. While linoleic acid and α-linolenic acid are the major fatty acids in seed oil, sea buckthorn pulp oil contains approximately 65% combined of the monounsaturated fatty acid, palmitoleic acid, and the saturated fatty acid, palmitic acid. Few other vegetable oils contain a similar quantity of these fatty acids.

Hippophae

Hippophae, the sea buckthorns, are deciduous shrubs in the family Elaeagnaceae. The name sea buckthorn may be hyphenated to avoid confusion with the buckthorns (Rhamnus, family Rhamnaceae). It is also referred to as sandthorn, sallowthorn, or seaberry.

Taxonomy

In ancient times, leaves and young branches from sea buckthorn were supposedly fed as a remedy to horses to support weight gain and appearance of the coat, thus leading to the name of the genus, Hippophae derived from hippo (horse), and phaos (shining).

Distribution

Seven species are recognized, two of them probably of hybrid origin, native over a wide area of Europe and Asia.

Hippophae rhamnoides, the common sea buckthorn, is by far the most widespread of the species in the genus, with the ranges of its eight subspecies extending from the Atlantic coasts of Europe across to northwestern Mongolia and northwestern China. In western Europe, it is largely confined to sea coasts where salt spray off the sea prevents other larger plants from outcompeting it, but in central Asia, it is more widespread in dry semidesert sites where other plants cannot survive the dry conditions. In central Europe and Asia, it also occurs as a subalpine shrub above tree line in mountains, and other sunny areas such as river banks. They are tolerant of salt in the air and soil, but demand full sunlight for good growth and do not tolerate shady conditions near larger trees. They typically grow in dry, sandy areas.