Pineapple Waste Extract for Preventing Oxidation in Model Food Systems

Area of Science:

• Food Science
• Nutritional Biochemistry
• Agricultural Byproducts Valorization

Background:

• Pineapple (Ananas comosus) processing generates substantial waste, often discarded.
• Fruit residues, including pineapple waste, can possess antioxidant properties comparable to fruit pulp.
• Polyphenols in fruit waste represent a potential natural source of antioxidants.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the antioxidant activity of pineapple waste extracts.
• To evaluate the application of these extracts in reducing oxidation in food systems.
• To assess the impact of pineapple waste extracts on the sensory properties of food products.

Main Methods:

• Quantification of polyphenol scavenging activity using the oxygen radical antioxidant capacity (ORAC) assay.
• Assessment of antioxidant potential in oil-in-water (o/w) emulsions and muffins.
• Measurement of primary (peroxide value, PV) and secondary (thiobarbituric acid reactive substances, TBARs) oxidation products.
• Sensory evaluation of muffins using a triangular test.

Main Results:

• Pineapple waste extracts significantly reduced oxidation products: 59% reduction in emulsions (PV) and 91% in muffins (PV).
• TBARs values decreased by 27% in emulsions and 51% in muffins.
• Sensory analysis indicated no significant difference between samples with and without pineapple waste extract (α = 0.05).

Conclusions:

• Pineapple waste is a valuable source of natural antioxidants with significant efficacy.
• These extracts can be effectively applied to inhibit lipid oxidation in food products.
• Incorporation of pineapple waste extracts does not negatively impact the sensory attributes of muffins.