Acerola powder for use as a substitute for ascorbic acid in the agri-food field

Abstract

The invention concerns a powder consisting of 0.5 to 0.8% by weight of water and a dry material consisting of 88 to 95% by weight of an acerola fruit dry extract and 5 to 12% by weight of magnesium, calcium, zinc, sodium or potassium hydroxide or carbonate, the method of preparing same and the applications thereof for replacing ascorbic acid and/or the derivatives of same in food products.

Claims

1. A powder consisting of: 0.5% to 8% by weight of water, relative to the total weight of the powder; and a dry material consisting of: 88% to 95% by weight of dried acerola fruit juice, relative to the total weight of the dry material; and 5% to 12% by weight of a hydroxide or carbonate of magnesium, calcium, zinc, sodium or potassium, relative to the total weight of the dry material, wherein the dried acerola fruit juice provides the powder with a vitamin C content of 30% to 40% by weight relative to the total weight of the powder.

2. The powder according to claim 1, containing natural vitamin C content of 34%3% by weight, relative to the total weight of the powder.

3. The powder according to claim 2, wherein the natural vitamin C content is 34%2%, by weight, relative to the total weight of the powder.

4. The powder according to claim 1, having a pH varying from 4 to 8.

5. The powder according to claim 4, wherein the pH varies between 4.5 to 6.

6. The powder according to claim 1, comprising 0.5% to 5% by weight of water, relative to the total weight of the powder.

7. The powder according to claim 6, comprising 1% to 3% by weight of water, relative to the total weight of the powder.

8. A method for preparing the powder of claim 1, the method comprising the following steps: (i) mixing acerola fruit juice; a hydroxide or carbonate of calcium, zinc, sodium or potassium; and water, (ii) drying the mixture to a water content of 0.5% to 8% by weight, relative to the total weight of the powder, and (iii) screening the powder obtained.

9. The method according to claim 8 wherein the drying is carried out by spraying.

10. A food additive or ingredient comprising the powder of according to claim 1.

11. A food or food composition comprising the food additive or ingredient according to claim 10 combined with a food component.

12. A food or food composition comprising the powder according to claim 1 combined with a food component.

13. A method comprising: providing a powder, the powder consisting of: 0.5% to 8% by weight of water, relative to the total weight of the powder; and a dry material consisting of: 88% to 95% by weight of dried acerola fruit juice, relative to the total weight of the dry material; and 5% to 12% by weight of a hydroxide or carbonate of magnesium, calcium, zinc, sodium or potassium, relative to the total weight of the dry material, wherein the dried acerola fruit juice provides the powder with a vitamin C content of 30% to 40% by weight relative to the total weight of the powder; and applying the powder to a food product to replace ascorbic acid and/or derivatives thereof.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein the powder is applied to a charcuterie product to replace erythorbate.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) FIG. 1: Change in vitamin C content of the powder of the invention during storage at 4 C. or 20 C. in an aluminium bag or without an aluminium bag.

(2) FIG. 2: Demonstration of the importance of magnesium hydroxide content on the yield of the powder of the invention.

(3) FIG. 3: Effect of replacing ascorbic acid with the powder of the invention on the sensory profile of a bakery matrix.

(4) FIG. 4: Effect of increasing concentrations of the powder of the invention on the percentage decrease in nitrites present in ground pork preparations after 4 weeks of storage at 4 C.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Examples

Example 1Production and Solubilisation Properties of a Powder According to the Invention

(5) i. Production of a Powder According to the Invention

(6) Taking into account the features of the acerola fruit juice concentrate employed (50 Brix, 17% vitamin C), the pH of the mixture was stabilised at 4.5 with 92% acerola fruit juice concentrate and 8% magnesium hydroxide (percentages expressed relative to the dry material).

(7) The amount of water to be added was then calculated so as to obtain a Brix value for the acerola fruit juice concentrate/magnesium hydroxide/water mixture of 30 Brix.

(8) Consequently, the following formulation was prepared according to the method below:

(9) TABLE-US-00001 Recipe (% of dry Amount employed Raw material material) pH (kg) Acerola fruit juice concentrate 92 3.01 420 Magnesium hydroxide 8 14 15 Water 7.61 300

(10) The materials were mixed in a vat and the mixture was spray-dried (inlet temperature 160 C., outlet temperature 86-88 C.). The powder was screened with a 650 m mesh and packaged in aluminium bags.

(11) The yield obtained is 73.5% and productivity is about 84 kg/h.

(12) The powder is characterised by a vitamin C content of 36.7% by weight of the total weight of the powder, which is stable over time as shown by the ageing test applied to the powder (see FIG. 1).

(13) The product has excellent solubility (absence of a pellet visible to the naked eye after dissolution of the powder at a concentration of 10% by weight of the total weight of the powder in water and then centrifugation at 10,000 g for 10 minutes) and the solution obtained is bright and clear.

(14) ii. Effect of Magnesium Hydroxide Content in the Powder of the Invention

(15) In order to illustrate the importance of magnesium hydroxide content in the powder of the invention, spray-drying tests were carried out with various levels of Mg(OH)2 (here, pilot-stage tests).

(16) As the graph in FIG. 2 proves, the yield of the powder of the invention decreases with decreasing amounts of magnesium hydroxide, reaching values below 65% (poor yield) with a magnesium hydroxide content of 5% by weight (content expressed relative to the dry material of the powder of the invention).

(17) iii. Solubilisation Properties of a Powder of the Invention

(18) In order to show the lower solubility of a freeze-dried acerola powder, solubilisation tests were performed on the sprayed powder of the invention compared with a freeze-dried powder. The results are presented below in Table 1.

(19) TABLE-US-00002 TABLE 1 Solubilisation tests of acerola powders obtained by means of two different drying methods (spraying for the powder of the invention and freeze-drying) Sample (diluted to 10% Insoluble in water) materials (%) Acerola powder of the 1.8 0.3 invention Freeze-dried acerola 5.7 0.1 powder

(20) These tests clearly show the lower solubility of the freeze-dried powder (quantification of insoluble materials presented in Table 1). About three times more insoluble compounds are generated from a 10% solution of freeze-dried powder. Furthermore, the appearance of a pellet visible to the naked eye is noted in the case of the test performed with the freeze-dried powder, which is not the case for the test performed with the powder of the invention.

(21) This criterion may act to curb the use of the product in bright and clear products (beverages, for example). Furthermore, it may be assumed that in a freeze-dried powder characterised by many insoluble particles when in solution, vitamin C is less available and is less effective in terms of the effects attributed thereto (role as antioxidant, stabiliser, etc.). On the other hand, the spectrum of use of the powder of the invention (obtained by spraying) is not subject to this constraint.

Example 2Antioxidant Potential of the Powder of Example 1 Versus Ascorbic Acid

(22) Tests performed in vitro illustrate the properties of the powder of the invention in comparison with the single effect of ascorbic acid. The table below shows that the powder of Example 1, in comparison with ascorbic acid, has a greater antiradical and antioxidant activity than that of equivalent concentrations of ascorbic acid.

(23) TABLE-US-00003 TABLE 2 Evaluation of the antioxidant power of acerola powder versus ascorbic acid Powder of the Method invention Ascorbic acid Antiradical activity (% of 90.1 70.6* trapping of the free radical DPPH at the fixed concentration of 0.44 mg/ml ascorbic acid eq) Overall antioxidant power 58 34 (g/100 g of product in ascorbic acid eq) *Ascorbic acid tested in combination with Mg(OH).sub.2 in the proportions present in the powder of the invention.

Example 3Efficacy in a Food Application of the Powder of the Invention as a Natural Substitute for Ascorbic Acid and Derivatives Thereof

(24) i. Natural Alternative to Sodium Erythorbate used in Cooked Meats Products

(25) The powder of Example 1 was tested in a cooked pork ham matrix (injected product model). It was diluted in brine intended for injection into the cooked meats product so as to reach a final concentration in the finished product of 425 ppm of vitamin C. A control prepared under the same conditions but comprising sodium erythorbate incorporated so as to reach equivalent erythorbate concentrations was also used as a comparison product. The ham was vacuum-packed after being sliced, then stored at 4 C. for up to 12 weeks.

(26) The table below summarises the product features obtained with sodium erythorbate and with the powder of Example 1, respectively.

(27) TABLE-US-00004 TABLE 3 Features of hams containing the acerola powder of the invention versus sodium erythorbate after 12 weeks of storage at 4 C. Powders of the invention Sodium Erythorbate Yield after 91.87 92.19 cooking (%) Sensory Colour: very good result in Colour: pink, typical evaluation terms of colour, pink, typical of ham of ham, product preferred over Texture: typical of the control ham Texture: very good result, Taste: smoky, salty, texture judged better compared typical of ham with the control, firm Taste: smoky, salty, attributes of cooked meats products Total aerobic <10 <10 mesophilic flora (CFU/g)

(28) The tests performed show the possibility of replacing sodium erythorbate with the product of the invention, the hams thus obtained being as appreciated as, even more appreciated than, the control. Furthermore, the fact of substituting the traditionally used additive with the natural powder of the invention does not have an impact on the yield or on the microbiological quality of the product.

(29) Similar tests of substituting for sodium erythorbate with the powder of Example 1 in amounts for reaching 300 ppm of erythorbate or of vitamin C in the finished product were also performed in frankfurter-type sausages (emulsion-type fine-texture product model). The results are just as satisfactory, as shown by the texture analyses, the microbiological analyses, the oxidation level analyses and the sensory evaluation conducted throughout the life of the product (storage at 4 C. for 3 weeks). Benefits may again be observed in the presence of the powder of the invention compared with the control. In particular, the product of the invention is able to limit the loss of organoleptic intensity observed during storage of the control containing sodium erythorbate.

(30) ii. Natural Alternative to Ascorbic Acid used in Bakery Products

(31) The powder of Example 1 was also incorporated into other types of applications, in particular brioche-type bakery products at concentrations reaching 50 or 150 ppm of vitamin C in the finished product. The feasibility of substituting for ascorbic acid introduced in the same amounts is proven once again. The powder of the invention even has advantages compared to the ascorbic acid control, slowing the appearance of false tastes which may develop during storage at room temperature, as shown in FIG. 3.

Example 4Effect of the Product of the Invention on Decrease in Residual Nitrites Level in a Cooked Meats Application

(32) The powder of the invention was incorporated into a ground pork-based formulation at concentrations reaching 170 ppm and 510 ppm of vitamin C (at concentrations of 0.05% and 0.15% by weight of powder relative to the weight of the fresh meat preparation, respectively). The preparations were vacuum-packed in the form of 80 g hamburger steak-type portions, cooked and stored at 4 C. for up to 4 weeks. The nitrites level present in the meat preparations was analysed regularly during storage. The graph in FIG. 4 presents the results obtained at the end of 4 weeks of storage.

(33) The tests performed show the linear relationship between percentage decrease in residual nitrites level and amount of powder of the invention incorporated into the matrix. Notably, a lower residual nitrites level is associated with a lower level of nitrosamine formation in vivo and thus with a lower risk of development of cancers of the digestive system.