Homogenization of tomato and apricot juice concentrate and a sensory analysis of its effect

Sammanfattning: Juice homogenization is mostly done to create smaller fiber particles, which reduces the sedimentation velocity to a lower level. So far, fruit juice concentrate is diluted to juice before it is homogenized. The first aim of this research paper is a feasibility study regarding the homogenization of fruit juice concentrate before it is diluted to juice. That would save capacity and energy. Secondly, besides the prevention of sedimentation it is unclear how the juice quality is affected from the consumer point of few. To get a better understanding of it a sensory analysis was conducted with different series of homogenized tomato and apricot juice regarding pressure and homogenized juice concentration The results revealed that it is possible to homogenize fruit juice concentrate before diluting it. However, the increase in consistency, yield stress and apparent G’ modulus get smaller, the more of the concentrate was homogenized. The difference in the effect becomes smaller the higher the homogenization pressure was. The calculated particle size distribution from the Mastersizer and the visual analyzed microscope images had the same results. To get the same size distribution slightly higher pressure is needed when more concentrate is homogenized. The sensory analysis showed that the change in pressure is influencing all attributes asked to the respondents. Furthermore, the liking is affected by the juice type but not by the used homogenized concentrations. The tomato juice, which was homogenized with a pressure of 150 bar, had the best scoring for sweetness, flavor, mouthfeel and overall likeability. The homogenization of apricot nectar increased the liking for uniformity, sweetness and flavor. The preferred homogenization pressure range was between 50 and 150 bar. It can be concluded that a higher juice concentration can be homogenized without affecting the quality properties. Furthermore, the ideal homogenization pressure is between 100 and 150 bar for the examined juices.