The antioxidative and antibrowning effects of citrus peel extracts on fresh-cut apples

Abstract

This study was designed to evaluate the usability of the following citrus peel extracts (CPEs): Citrus sinensis (orange), C. unshiu (mandarin orange), C. limon (lemon), and C. paradise (grapefruit) as natural antibrowning agents. Overall, 0.1% of the CPEs were effective in reducing the browning of apple slices. The appearance of apple slices dipped in C. limon peel extracts (LPE) were found to be excellent and their Hunter L and ΔE values were similar to the values obtained when apple slices were dipped in ascorbic acid. The pH values of the different CPEs were not significantly different from each other, but were higher than that of ascorbic acid. LPE was found to possess the highest total phenolic content, flavonoid content, DPPH radical scavenging activity, and copper (Cu2+) chelating activity. All these results suggest that citrus peel extracts, especially lemon peel extract, can be used as natural antibrowning agents. © The Korean Society of Food Science and Technology.