Discovery Science Research Project
Kale Longitudinal Study

To assure that Standard Process is producing the highest quality products we have conducted several experiments to make sure that the cruciferous vegetable source material used in some products has the best profile of beneficial phytochemicals that we can provide. Therefore, we have examined the time of harvest of kale to see what growth periods optimize phytochemical content. Our experiments have demonstrated that harvesting the kale at a time that maximizes yield does not affect phytochemical content in a negative way.

Carotenoid content in kale increases during growth of the plants.

The carotenoids β-carotene and lutein were measured in Red Ursa kale plants, the variety of kale used in Standard Process products, beginning a week after the plants were harvested through the 13th week of growth, at which time the plants had reached full size. Harvesting the kale when it has reached full size does not significantly affect carotenoid content, and thus Standard Process can optimize yield without adversely affecting carotenoid content.

The height of kale increases 1000% over the course of 3 months of growth.

The growth of Red Ursa kale was measured over 3 months of growth. Over the course of three months, the kale plants became 10 times taller, significantly improving the yield.

Phenolic content of kale does not dramatically decrease as the plants mature.

Phenolic compounds have been shown to have health benefits such as working as antioxidants. The phenolic content of Red Ursa kale was measured over the course of 3 months of growth. While there was some variation in phenolic content during the growth of this plant, harvesting the kale at a time that optimizes growth does not compromise phenolic content.