Abstract
The aim of this study was to establish an efficient, sustainable technological procedure for valorization of food by-product, that is, cocoa bean shells (CBSs). The properties and stability of CBS extracts obtained by spray drying process with maltodextrin (MD) and whey protein (WP) as carrier agents were evaluated. For this purpose, phytochemicals of CBSs were extracted by subcritical water extraction. Physico-chemical properties, total phenolic (TP) and total flavonoid (TF) contents of the encapsulated extracts were determined in order to verify the efficiency of spray drying. Additional analyses for phytochemical characterization of the obtained powders were also performed. The efficiency of microencapsulation process was characterized by product recoveries higher than 58%. Both coating materials significantly influenced the encapsulation of phytochemicals in terms of rehydration, water solubility index and water absorption index, with WP being at an advantage. The best results for TP and TF contents were achieved when CBSs were encapsulated using WP (37.68 mg GAE/g and 7.66 mg CE/g, respectively). Microencapsulation using WP yielded higher content of gallic acid, caffeine, and theobromine than those with MD. According to the results, the formulation using 50% WP provided a better preservation of polyphenols compared to 50% MD. Therefore, spray drying with WP can be used as a method of choice for obtaining high quality CBS powders.
Highlights
Cocoa (Theobroma cacao L.) bean shell is considered an industrial by-product of cocoa processing usually remaining underutilized
The main purpose of the present study was to estimate the efficiency of spray drying technology to microencapsulate phytochemical compounds from cocoa bean shells (CBSs) subcritical water extract
The results revealed that the carrier used for encapsulation had an important role in the retention of phytochemicals within the matrix
Summary
Cocoa (Theobroma cacao L.) bean shell is considered an industrial by-product of cocoa processing usually remaining underutilized. Cocoa shells represent 12%–20% of the cocoa bean [1] This valuable biowaste is mainly used as a fuel, animal feed additive or for preparation of fertilizers [2,3]. The value of cocoa bean shell (CBS) has received increasing attention due to high nutritional value and high content of phytochemicals, such as phenol compounds, dietary fibers, lipids, sugars, and proteins whose composition depends mostly on the variety, growing region, the fermentation, and processing operations [4]. Many researchers propose the use of this by-product as a food ingredient or other added-value applications [9,10,11]. Rojo-Poveda et al [11] demonstrated that CBS can be used as an ingredient for home-made beverages because of its potential health benefits
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