A packaging system is designed in our laboratory and evaluated for its suitability to extend storage life and improve the quality of tomato (var. Rio Grande) fruits at ambient temperature (Patent App. No. 484 ⁄ 2005). Freshly harvested mature green tomatoes were packed in polyethylene packaging with or without treating with calcium chloride, boric acid and potassium permanganate. The fruits were then evaluated for changes in quality parameters within the different stages of ripening. The treatments improved the storage life up to 96 days when compared with that of control (32 days). The results showed that within each ripening stage, the treated fruits remained better than that of control and all the ripening stages and treatments are significantly different (P < 0.05) from each other. It can also be deduced that treated fruits showed lower weight loss (%), total soluble solids (TSS) contents, acidity and spoilage incidence while ascorbic acid contents, sugar to acid ratio, flavour, texture, colour and overall acceptability were higher in treated fruits when compared with control at the red stage of ripening. Total sugars (%) were low in fruits treated with calcium chloride and boric acid with or without potassium permanganate.

The research was aimed to determine the effectiveness of different cooking and processing methods for reduction of phytic acid (PA) in wheat. Wheat is the staple food in Pakistan, supplying mainly energy, protein and minerals requirements in the average daily diet of rural and urban families. But compounds like PA depreciate its quality. In the first phase of the present study, seven wheat varieties viz. Inqilab-91, Chakwal-97, Margalla-99, Wafaq-2001, G.A-2002, N.R-231 and N.R-234, most commonly grown all over Pakistan, were analyzed for PA without any treatment. PA was within the ranged of 1.503 (Inqalab-91) and 1.223% (N.R-234). In the second phase, different processing methods like soaking, germination and heat treatment were applied to check their effect on the reduction of PA. All treatments resulted in gradual decrease in PA contents. The soaking treatment was applied for 4, 8, in Chakwal-97 after 24-h soaking. The germination treatment was applied for 24, 36 and 48 h. The highest loss of PA was observed in Margalla-99 (40%) while the lowest (37%) in N.R-231 after 48-h germination. Similarly, heat treatment was also applied for 10, 30 and 60 min. Maximum PA loss was observed after 60-min heating in Wafaq-2001 (32%) while minimum (27.0%) in N.R-23. Different processing methodologies can be applied for the reduction of PA. Each and every method has its own merits. If one method is 3 Corresponding

This systematic research was conducted to assess the suitability of Withania coagulans for the preparation of mozzarella cheese from buffalo milk. The extract of dried berries of paneer booti (W. coagulans) was prepared in three buffers separately viz. Tris‐HCl, phosphate, NaCl and appropriate concentration of crude extracts were tested for their milk coagulating activity. NaCl solution with 0.85% strength was found to be suitable for milk coagulation without any objectionable taste and flavour. The results revealed that 15 μL crude enzyme extract per mL of milk was the optimum concentration for coagulation while 4.25 and 37 °C were the best levels of pH and incubation temperature for coagulation respectively. Mozzarella cheese prepared from crude enzyme extract was compared with the cheese prepared by calf rennet using acidification process. There was a nonsignificant difference among all tested parameters of both the coagulants. These findings support the suitability of an aqueous extract of W. coagulans for the commercial preparation of different types of mozzarella cheeses.

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The effects of different storage conditions on the coagulating properties of extracts of Withania coagulans berries were investigated in terms of coagulation time, pH and quality attributes of cheese prepared from buffalo milk. The extracts were stored under different conditions, viz. room temperature (27 ± 3 °C), refrigerated storage (4 °C), frozen storage (−20 °C) and lyophilisation. The milk‐coagulating activity of the plant extracts was measured on a fortnightly basis for a period of 5 months. There was a nonsignificant change in pH and the milk coagulating properties of the lyophilised extract. Physiochemical analysis revealed that cheese prepared with lyophilised extract retained the highest content of ash (2.3%), fat (23.8%), total solids (48.7%) and crude protein (22.7%), and resulted in the highest cheese yield (17.6%) compared to other tested treatments. Thus, it is concluded that lyophilisation has good potential for storage of vegetable extract coagulants.