Sensorial and physicochemical characterisation of snack bar with gum arabic (Acacia seyal) addition

Abstract

Non-communicable diseases such as diabetes, atherosclerosis, myocardial infarction, and hypertension have rapidly increased. The scenario is due to unhealthy eating habits and unhealthy foods with high fat and oil, and high sugar on the market. A snack bar is one of the most suitable products as ready-to-eat food. It would be an ideal healthy food due to consumer demand for fast-growing natural foods. The application of Gum Arabic to confectionaries (snack bars) in the food industry is still low. Gum Arabic produced by the stem and branches of Acacia seyal has an excellent functional value of dietary fibre and the potential as an effective source in the formulation of a high fibre GA snack bar. This study was conducted to evaluate the sensorial and physicochemical characteristics of GA snack bar formulation with different concentrations of Gum Arabic of 10%, 20%, and 30%. Sensory analysis was conducted by using an acceptance test which is a 5-point hedonic scale. The attribute consists of colour, appearance, hardness, crispness, taste, and overall acceptance. For physicochemical properties, the colour, texture (i.e., hardness and crispness), pH, total soluble solid, water activity, moisture, crude protein, crude fat, crude ash, crude fibre, carbohydrate, and calorie determination are included. However, the value of a*, b* and protein were significantly (p<0.05) decreased with increasing the Gum Arabic concentrations. Besides, there was a significant difference in all attributes for sensory evaluation except for appearance. In conclusion, the addition of Gum Arabic up to 30% into the GA snack bar caused significantly (p<0.05) increased the lightness (L*), texture, total soluble solid, water activity, moisture, crude fat, crude ash, crude fibre, carbohydrate as well as calories.