1. Impact of a minimally processing route for the production of infant formulas on the organoleptic properties
- Author
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Crépin, Marine, Gourrat, Karine, Feyen, Valérie, Szleper, Emilie, Nicklaus, Sophie, Deglaire, Amélie, Lucchi, Géraldine, and Julien, Sabine
- Subjects
Volatile Organic Compounds ,[SDV.AEN] Life Sciences [q-bio]/Food and Nutrition ,Triangular tests ,Organoleptic properties ,Check-all-that-apply method ,Infant formulas ,Microfiltration ,[SDV.MP] Life Sciences [q-bio]/Microbiology and Parasitology ,[SDV.BIO] Life Sciences [q-bio]/Biotechnology - Abstract
Many new-borns are fed with substitutes of breast milk. These products undergo several heat treatments, necessary to insure their microbiologic safety but probably modifying their organo-leptic properties. High temperature can damage milk proteins and form Maillard reaction prod-ucts with lactose. Microfiltration – to replace the heat treatments for a milk debacterization – combined with a soft spray-drying is currently an alternative little exploited to produce infant formulas (IFs) although microbiologically safe. The aim of this study was to determine the im-pact of such processing route on the organoleptic properties of the IFs. Three experimental IFs were manufactured at a semi-industrial scale, from fresh bovine skimmed milk: one with no heat treatments (T-), one with one moderate heat treatment (T+) and another one with successive and higher heat treatments (T+++) such as in industries. Sensory evaluations were performed by a panel of 50 untrained adults to characterise overall sensory differences (triangular tests) and the organoleptic properties (check-all-that-apply (CATA) de-scription) of the 3 experimental IFs, in comparison with 2 commercial ones (Blédilait, Guigoz). Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) contained in T- and T+++ were extracted with the solvent assisted flavour evaporation technique. The water phase was extracted with dichloromethane and concentrated in Kuderna-Danish apparatus. Samples were analysed by gas chromatography – electronic ionisation – mass spectrometry (GC-EI-MS), equipped with a polar capillary DB-WAX column to perform VOCs identification and relative quantification. Significant sensory differences were found in the triangular tests, between the experi-mental/commercial IFs, T-/T+++ and the both commercial brands. The CATA method supplied a global description of the 5 IFs, with 20 descriptors ticked by the panellists – related to colour, texture, taste, odour. A principal component analysis (PCA) was performed on quotations fre-quencies for each descriptor: there was a clear difference between off-flavour and pleasant de-scriptors. Another PCA shows an opposition between Guigoz – close to off-flavour descriptors – and the 4 other IFs – near to pleasant ones (“sweet”, “dairy”, “fat”, “butter”). These 4 IFs could be discriminated: T+++ was close to the same descriptors as Blédilait, as T- was with T+. Around 40 VOCs belonging to various chemical classes were identified. They are similar to T- and T+++, but in different proportions. These VOCs have olfactory connotations bound to a “fat in-mouth” sensation, “grass” and “fish” odours. A simple and saturated aldehydes group (pentanal, hexanal) comes probably from lipid oxidation, with a formation of hydroperoxides altering food flavour. Decomposition of these peroxides drives to a complex mixture of second-ary products (aldehydes, ketones…). VOCs quantities found in the IFs are in the range of the commercial ones. The IFs produced by different processing routes were different from a sensory point of view, with the less treated IF characterised by pleasant descriptors. The VOCs characterisation con-firms some flavour differences between the both experimental IFs and reveals presence of alde-hydes coming from the lipid peroxidation, which is commonplace for such IFs. Overall, these experimental IFs with a minimal processing route fit well withn IFs market, from a sensory point of view.
- Published
- 2022