A Comparative Study of the Physicochemical Properties and Sensory Evaluation of Commercial Orange Juice sold in the Sulaimani Market with Local Preparation of Orange Juice

Abstract

Orange juice is one of the most popular juices on the market. The bulk of accessible fruit drinks are synthetic and may include a number of toxic and poisonous substances those are harmful to customers' health. This study compares the physicochemical parameters, sugar content, organic acids, and sensory evaluation of commercial and fresh orange juice samples. The orange fruit was treated to produce fresh juice, which has 100% fruit content and no sugars or diluents. Packaged juice samples were obtained from a local store, and all testing was completed prior to the expiration of the juice's shelf life. Total solids, ash content, and pH were among the physicochemical properties investigated, with values ranging from 9.507–13.145%, 0.110–0.447%, and 4.360–5.970, respectively. Sugar content was observed to be in the ranges of 2.118–5.278, 2.641–4.317, and 2.563–4.184 g/100 ml for glucose, fructose, and sucrose individually. Organic acids (ascorbic, acetic, and citric acid) were found to have concentrations ranging from 25.170–43.981, 1.307–5.760 and 311–411.33 mg/100 ml separately. Sensory evaluation revealed a significant difference (p<0.05) between homemade and commercial orange samples. According to the acquired results and cluster analysis, there is a significant difference between handmade and commercial juice parameters. Commercial items include more sugar than fresh samples. The findings of this study contribute to our understanding of the nutrition and quality of commercial and homemade orange juice samples. Commercial samples are not recommended for regular intake due to the significant differences between artificial and fresh orange juice samples.