Exploiting the Crithmum maritimum L. Aqueous Extracts and Essential Oil as Potential Preservatives in Food, Feed, Pharmaceutical and Cosmetic Industries

Chritmum maritimum, sea fennel, is a facultative halophyte used in salads, soups, and sauces, as well as used to prepare medicinal juices and aqueous extracts (AE) to treat several ailments. Its essential oil (EO) is used as a spice and aromatizing. In this work, the nutritional (crude protein, fiber, lipids, and ashes content) and HPLC-PDA phenolic profiles were determined. Furthermore, the antioxidant potential of the infusion and of the decoction, as well as the antibacterial activity of both, the AE and EO, were assessed against food-contaminating bacteria. The composition of the EO was also established. Sea fennel exhibited considerable fiber (34.3 ± 1.92%) and mineral content (23.6 ± 4.8%). AE contains chlorogenic acid as the major phenolic compound, 49.7 ± 0.8 mg/g in the infusion dry extract and (26.8 ± 0.9 mg/g in the decoction dry extract). EO contains high amounts of monoterpene hydrocarbons, namely γ-terpinene and sabinene. In regards to the antioxidant activity, IC(50) values for the infusion and decoction were, respectively: 36.5 ± 1.4 μg/mL and 44.7 ± 4.4 μg/mL in the DPPH assay; 37.3 ± 2.6 μg/mL and 38.4 ± 1.8 μg/mL, in the ABTS assay. EO is particularly active against Bacillus cereus and Lactobacillus plantarum. The results support the use of sea fennel AE and EO as a potential alternative preservative ingredient for feeds, foods, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic industries, due to the antioxidant activity of infusion and decoction, and antibacterial properties of essential oil.