Carotenoids, ascorbic acid and total phenolic content in the root tissue from five Australian-grown sweet potato cultivars

© 2021 The Royal Society of New Zealand. Sweet potatoes are experiencing increased popularity across many parts of the world due to their high levels of functionally beneficial compounds, including vitamin C, anthocyanins and carotenoids. However, limited work has been performed on Australian-grown sweet potatoes. This work investigated the key phytochemical composition of the root tissue of five Australian sweet potato cultivars that are grown commercially. The cultivar WSPF (White Skin, Purple Flesh) displayed the highest total phenolic content, total antioxidant capacity and total anthocyanin content. However, the cultivar Bellevue contained the highest β-carotene content (48.2 mg 100 g−1 on a dry weight basis), followed by New Orleans and Beauregard (43.0 and 34.0 mg 100 g−1, respectively). White and purple-fleshed cultivars contained virtually no β-carotene (0.1–0.2 mg 100 g−1). The New Orleans cultivar had the highest ascorbic acid content on a dry weight basis (51.9 mg 100 g−1) and the WSPF cultivar the lowest (17.8 mg 100 g−1).