Cloud stability, color, and extraction yield of a natural clouding agent obtained from orange peel by an enzymatic treatment

Abstract

Clouding agents (CA) are usually added to fruit juice or fruit beverage to increase turbidity and provide a natural appearance. Synthetic CAs are very stable, but consumers prefers natural products. In addition, the legislation is becoming more and more restrictive on the utilization of synthetic products as food additives. The objective of this work was to obtain a natural CA from orange peel by enzymatic treatment using pectin methylesterase (PME), poligalacturonase (PG), and cellulase (C). Cloud stability and color of the CA, as well as the extraction yield, were evaluated to establish the treatment conditions. The addition of 110 μL/kg of PME, 210 μL/kg of PG, and 90 mg/kg of C to orange peels at 30 °C for 80 min led to a CA that kept the maximum cloud stability. The CA relative turbidity at 0.5oBrix and 5 °C after 9 days was 88.3%.