DEVELOPMENT AND OPTIMIZATION OF BLACK MULBERRY RTS DRINK

Present study was conducted during the year 2020 at the Food Technology Section of Postharvest Research Centre, Ayub Agricultural Research Institute, Faisalabad, Pakistan on the value addition of short seasoned indigenous fruit for the development of black mulberry RTS drink. The nutritional quality and effect of storage on the keeping quality of drink was evaluated. Drinks were developed by using different percentage of pulp in final ceipe, filtered, pasteurized and filled in glass bottles. The physicochemical characteristics of the drinks during shelf life were studied. Four drinks with different mulberry fruit juice percentage were prepared and stored them at ambient temperature. The total soluble solids were found to be 13.03, 13.60, 13.86 and 14.20 ⸰ Brix in T1 , T2 , T3 and T4 respectively. During the three months storage periods TSS was reached up to 14.06, 14.13, 14.16 and 14.63 for T1 , T2 , T3 and T4 , respectively. Reducing and total sugars % were increased and observed in the range of (7.20-7.47%), (7.65-7.89%), (7.75- 7.89%), (8.26-9.25%) and (12.52-12.68%), (13.20-13.69%), (13.68-14.98%), (14.52-15.4%) for T1 , T2 , T3 , and T4 , respectively. Non-reducing sugar percent was observed to be reduced from 5.32 to 5.21%, 5.89 to 5.63%, 6.23-6.11% and 6.26 to 6.20% for T1 , T2 , T3 and T4 , respectively during three month storage period. Sensory evaluation showed all the treatments acceptable but highest scores for color, flavour, taste and overall acceptability were perceived in case of T4 with 25% fruit pulp at the end of storage period.