R‐Index Measure of Microencapsulated Tributyrin in Gamma‐Cyclodextrin Influenced by Drying Method

Microencapsulation is commonly used in the food industry for a variety of purposes including added ingredient functionally and taste‐masking for those ingredients with negative sensory qualities. Tributyrin (TB), a source intestinally‐essential butyric acid, possesses negative aroma (cheesy, fecal) and taste (bitter) qualities. This has significantly limited its use in food applications for the potential improvement of intestinal health. Utilizing spray drying and low‐temperature oven drying, microcapsules containing TB were produced using whey (WPI), WPI and inulin, and gamma‐cyclodextrin (GCD). To determine how microcapsule formulation and drying method affected the perception of TB relative to a control, microencapsulated and free TB were added to an infant formula system and evaluated using the rating method to determine R‐index measures. Pooled R‐index measures (α = 0.01, 2‐tailed, and n = 170) indicated that the only microcapsule not significantly different from the control (R‐index below 57.95%) was the GCD and TB oven dried (GCT OD) microcapsule. All other WPI, WPI–inulin, and GCD and TB spray‐dried (GCT SD) microcapsules were all significantly different from the control. Average individual R‐index results indicated that all microcapsules in infant formula, except for GCT OD, were significantly different (P < 0.01) from the control formula but not from free TB. Spray drying may create microcapsules with surface TB and disturb the GCD–TB complex, allowing free, and surface TB to be perceived by the panelists. The GCT OD microcapsule has the potential to be used for the potential oral treatment of intestinal disorders in functional food applications without the negative sensory qualities of TB.     

Foam‐Mat Freeze‐Drying of Bifidobacterium longum RO175: Viability and Refrigerated Storage Stability

Foaming as a pretreatment was used prior to freeze‐drying of Bifidobacterium longum RO175 to investigate the potential acceleration of the drying rate and increase in microorganism viability after the process. A study on storage of foamed and nonfoamed freeze‐dried products at 4 °C completed this study. B. longum RO175 in foamed medium could be freeze‐dried in 1/7 to 1/4 of the time required for nonfoamed suspensions. In addition, foamed suspensions presented higher viability immediately after freeze‐drying (13.6% compared to 12.81 % or 11.46%, depending on the cryoprotective media). Refrigerated storage led to a reduction in B. longum RO175 viability for all tested protective agents (foamed and nonfoamed). No correlation between glass transition temperature and stability of probiotic powders was observed during storage. In addition, lower viability after 56 d of storage was observed for foamed materials, probably due to foam porous structure and higher hygroscopicity, and oxygen presence and moisture pickup during storage.     

Microwave‐Osmotic/Microwave‐Vacuum Drying of Whole Cranberries: Comparison with Other Methods

A novel drying method for frozen‐thawed whole cranberries was developed by combining microwave osmotic dehydration under continuous flow medium spray (MWODS) conditions with microwave vacuum finish‐drying. A central composite rotatable design was used to vary temperature (33 to 67 °C), osmotic solution concentration (33 to 67 °B), contact time (5 to 55 min), and flow rate (2.1 to 4.1 L/min) in order to the determine the effects of MWODS input parameters on quality of the dried berry. Quality indices monitored included colorimetric and textural data in addition to anthocyanin retention and cellular structure. Overall it was found that the MWODS‐MWV process was able to produce dried cranberries with quality comparable to freeze dried samples in much shorter time. Additionally, cranberries dried via the novel process exhibited much higher quality than those dried via either vacuum or convective air drying in terms of color, anthocyanin content, and cellular structure.