The study has been hailed as a win for the push towards more natural foods as cloves would be able to replace synthetic antioxidants, which are currently used by manufacturers to make food last longer.

Professor Juana Fernández-Lopez, from Spain’s Miguel Hernández University, said cloves were a versatile spice.

“Out of the five antioxidant properties tested, cloves had the highest capacity to give off hydrogen, reduced lipid peroxidation well, and was the best iron reducer,” she said.

“The results show that use of the natural oxidants occurring in spices used in the Mediterranean diet, or their extracts, is a viable option for the food industry, as long as the characteristics of the food product are not affected,” said Fernandez-Lopez.

“These substances exhibit high antioxidant capacity, and could have beneficial effects for health,” she added.

The study was published in the latest issue of the Flavour and Fragrance Journal.