Sensory characterization and correlation of physical and chemical juçara pulp frozen and pasteurized after packaging

• Grant number: 11/10955-2
• Support type: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Effective date (Start): September 01, 2011
• Effective date (End): August 31, 2012
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Food Science and Technology
• Principal Investigator: Marta Helena Fillet Spoto
• Grantee: Renata Cristina Casemiro
• Home Institution: Escola Superior de Agricultura Luiz de Queiroz (ESALQ). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Piracicaba , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The palm tree Euterpe edulis is a plant native to the area of Atlantic Rainforest in Brazil, occurring from southern Bahia (15 º south) to the north of Rio Grande do Sul (30 º South). In addition to the palm, the fruits of juçara after processing can be used as an alternative for food security of low-income and generating surplus for marketing. Research juçara to date has been focused on the production of palm and now the fruit pulp has been gaining ground. This mode of consumption just reducing the pressure on the rampant exploitation of the palm, contributing to the conservation of threatened biome. Once washed, the pulp is easily degraded juçara not keeping its original characteristics at room temperature, due to its high microbial load, oxidation and its enzymatic browning. To avoid such harmful effects, it requires the application of treatments that aid in the preservation of the pulp, such as post-packaging pasteurization and freezing. However, its pulp needs studies focused on their sensory characteristics. The Quantitative Descriptive Analysis is a methodology that provides a complete description of all the sensory properties of the product. The objective of this study was to assess pulp juçara subjected to treatments of freezing and post-packaging pasteurization, determining its life span by sensory analysis (Quantitative Descriptive Analysis) and physical and chemical analysis (lipid, moisture, color, pH, acidity, polyphenol oxidase, peroxidase, total and reducing sugar, total solids).