The Assessment of Physical and Microbial Properties of Traditional Fruit Leathers in Tehran

Abstract

Background: Fruit leathers are nutritional products that are made by dehydrating a thin layer of fruit puree or juice under specific conditions, to obtain a chewy snack. Usually, the sun drying system is used to make traditional leathers, consequently takes a relatively long time and infections may occur during this period. Objectives: The aim of this work was to assess the chemical and microbial quality of traditional fruit leathers. Methods: In this study, 30 traditional sample leathers were obtained from the local market of Tehran. The pH, moisture, and microbiological load were measured in calculated samples. The pH was determined using a pH meter and moisture content values of all fruit leather samples were determined using the AOAC official method. For the assessment of aerobic mesophilic bacteria, yeast, and mold, dilutions were prepared and inoculated, followed by incubation for two and seven days at 37°C and 25°C, respectively. Also, this research used Green Bile Broth Brilliant Culture medium and most probable number (MPN) method for E. coli detection. Results: The measured pH of the samples was in the range of 2.3 to 3.6 and 56% of the samples had a higher moisture content than the standard. Measuring the microbial load of the samples showed that they were over-contaminated in 16% of cases. Also, E. coli was identified in four samples. Conclusions: This study showed that the high microbial load of traditional leathers, due to unhealthy production, is predictable. Thus, the correction of the traditional method for this product is recommended.

Quality Attributes of Carrot-Tamarind Leathers

“…This value offers a margin of safety for the storage of acid foods. As well, Roos (1995) who found that it would not only inhibit the growth of pathogenic microorganisms, on the other hand, it would strongly inhibit the growth of nonpathogenic yeasts and fungi. However, for this level of water activity, rates of non-enzymatic browning and enzymatic activity are not negligible and may even be considerable.…”

The effect of free and encapsulated probiotic bacteria on some physicochemical, microbiological, and textural properties of apricot leather (pestil) during storage

“…LPE1-FB exhibited a steady TMAB increase till Day 90, followed by a small decline (3.00 log cfu/g) up to 120 days. Previously, Safaei et al (2019) reported TMAB counts (cfu/g) in plum (10-3× 10 2 ), kiwi (10-3× 10 2 ), cherry (10-3 × 10 2 ), pomegranate (<10-4 × 10 1 ), apple (10 -1.2 × 10 1 ), apricot (1.4 × 10-4 × 10 1 ), and plum/apple (<10-10 1 ) fruit leathers, consistent with our findings. However, our results were considerably lower than those reported for durian leather in various packaging materials during 12-week storage (16.57-50.53 cfu/g) by Irwandi et al (1998).…”

“…The TYM counts (cfu/g) for plum (10-2.9× 10 2 ), kiwi (3 × 10-3.1 × 10 2 ), cherry (<10 −4 × 10 2 ), pomegranate (<10 −2 × 10 1 ), apple (1 × 10 2 -1.3 × 10 2 ), apricot (<10), and plum/apple (10-1.4× 10 1 ) fruit leathers were specified by Safaei et al (2019). Moreover, both Jeebit Singh et al (2020) and Irwandi et al (1998) reported that when a w level was lower than 0.6, most of the microorganisms can hardly survive.…”

ANALISIS SIFAT FISIKOKIMIA DAN SENSORI FRUIT LEATHER NANAS DENGAN PENAMBAHAN PEGAGAN (Centella asiatica L. Urban)

“…Nilai pH dan kadar air yang rendah dalam bahan pangan dapat menghambat pertumbuhan bakteri dan memperpanjang umur simpan bahan pangan (Safaei et al, 2019). Berdasarkan Tabel 3. dapat dilihat bahwa nilai pH fruit leather nanas hanya dipengaruhi oleh penambahan pegagan.…”