Description

Jagua (Genipin-Glycine) Blue occurs as a blue liquid or powder. It consists of a blue polymer as the main coloring compound and blue dimers as subsidiary colors. Jagua (Genipin-Glycine) Blue is produced from the juice extracted from the peeled and ground unripe fruit of Genipa americana, which naturally contains the aglycone genipin [methyl(1R,4aS,7aS)-1-hydroxy-7-(hydroxymethyl)-1,4a,5,7a-tetrahydrocyclopenta[c]pyran-4-carboxylate]. The extracted juice is filtered and treated with glycine in an amount stoichiometrically related to the genipin content of the juice. This mixture is then heated, which produces the combination of alternating dimetric moieties linked by a methylene bridge. The reaction mixture is then separated and concentrated before being formulated into commercial products with food-grade additives. Additional processing steps including drying, spray-drying, and sieving may be used, depending on the formulation needs. The products of commerce may be in liquid or powder form. Jagua (Genipin-Glycine) Blue is freely soluble in water and practically insoluble in hexane and in ethanol.