Direct formulation of solid foods with grape phenolics: studies on mass transfer and antioxidant capacity

Identifier:  TDX:350

Handle: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11797/TDX350

Authors:  Rózek, Aleksandra

Abstract:
The enrichment of fruits and vegetables with minerals, vitamins or physiologically active compounds that have potential benefits in terms of health maintenance and disease prevention may be a crucial way of developing new functional foods. Recently, extracts from grape seeds and skins have become a widespread nutritional supplement, because of their high content of phenolic compounds. These compounds have been shown to be highly bioavailable and to provide excellent health benefits. In the last few years, it has been suggested that osmotic treatment (OT) is a useful way of introducing controlled quantities of solution solutes into food and partially dehydrating it at the same time. A range of solid foods enriched with grape phenolics from several sources were formulated using OT. Process parameters such as the source and concentration of the phenolic compounds, the nature and concentration of the osmo-active solute in the osmotic solution, and the food structure were investigated. Moreover the effect of a post treatment such as convective air drying on the stability and antioxidant properties of the grape phenolics infused in the osmo-treated food was studied.The results confirm that OT is a suitable technology for the exploitation of jelly foods, fruits and vegetables as matrices into which functional ingredients can be successfully incorporated to provide novel functional products of intermediate moisture. Concentrated red grape must and commercial grape seed and white grape marc extracts were successfully used as nutritional supplements. Their high content in phenolic compounds makes them ideal sources of natural antioxidants.