Concentrated juices: classification and production technology

2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14

Concentrated juice was invented for convenience, it is an intermediate phase between freshly squeezed juice and reconstituted juice that fills store shelves. The usefulness of such raw materials raises doubts among consumers. Are they justified?

Production technology

Juices can be divided according to the method of production and purpose into types: freshly squeezed, direct extraction, concentrated and reconstituted. To obtain concentrated juices, it is necessary to remove all excess water from freshly squeezed juice. Freshly squeezed - directly squeezed juice that has not undergone any processing. Concentrated juices are produced in three ways:

• Evaporation. The juice is placed in special vacuum trays and heated. Do not bring to a boil, so that all the beneficial properties of the juice are preserved. As a result of evaporation, a viscous, viscous mass is obtained, reminiscent of honey.
• Freezing. The opposite process to evaporation, excess water is not evaporated, but frozen.
• Membrane method. The juice is passed through a perforated membrane that separates water molecules from everything else.

After receiving the concentrate, it is either frozen or pasteurized and canned for further transportation to the final product manufacturing plant. Under proper storage conditions, it is good for 6 months to a year. Different fruits give different amounts of concentrate. Fruits harvested in different countries give different flavors to the concentrate. The same applies to the year of harvest and variety of fruits.

Specifications (GOST R 52185-2003)

Conditions for the production of concentrated juices are determined by the State Standard. Concentrated fruit juices, the technical conditions of which are met in accordance with the standards, become a safe raw material for further use. Here are the requirements for the raw materials used. The use of concentrated aromatic substances obtained from fruits of the same species is allowed. It is allowed to use imported raw materials with suitable GOST characteristics and safety indicators. The use of natural and artificial dyes, flavors, preservatives, except for sorbic acid, is not allowed.

Packaging containers, consumer or transport, must be hermetically sealed, ensure the safety of products throughout the shelf life. Juices packed in glass containers must be protected from sunlight and light. Expiration dates and storage conditions are set by the manufacturer.

Labeling must contain the name of the juice, the manufacturer, its location, net weight, method of consumption,nutritional value, expiration date, storage conditions, type of juice - clarified or non-clarified.

What concentrated juices are for. Use

Concentrated juices are not intended to be used as food. They are an intermediate product, a raw material. Reconstituted juices are made from them, which are then sold in stores, and also added to jelly, jam, and other products. When the juice is restored, it goes through the reverse procedure - water returns to it. The recovery technology includes several stages, the concentrate is rapidly heated, then it is also rapidly cooled, sterile pure water, sugar or other sweeteners are added, as well as natural flavors lost during the concentration process.

This is how the well-known juice is obtained, which can be bought at any store. In terms of its qualities, it is no different from straight-pressed juice, it has the same properties and a set of vitamins. Why use such a complex process? Concentrated juices take up less space than freshly squeezed juices, making them easier to transport and store. This technology facilitates transportation from other countries. Another plus is that the concentrate can be stored for a long time, while retaining all the useful properties.

Classification

Concentrated juices are produced from various fruits in the countries where these fruits grow. This happens for obvious reasons - it's easier and cheaper. For Russia, the state standarda list of fruit juice concentrates has been defined: lingonberry, cherry plum, raspberry, cherry, pear, sea buckthorn, strawberry, apple, blueberry, grape, blueberry, cranberry, blackcurrant, blackberry, plum, cherry, chokeberry, redcurrant.

Concentrated juices according to the manufacturing method are divided into clarified (freed from all solid particles until transparent) and non-clarified (with suspensions). According to the canning method, concentrated juice can be frozen at a temperature not higher than -18 degrees, sterilized, non-sterilized.

Apple juice

Production of apple juice begins with the collection of raw materials - fruits of a certain variety. In production, cleaning, quality control of fruits and removal of spoiled apples are carried out. By pressing, directly squeezed juice is obtained, from which a concentrate will be prepared. Concentrated apple juice is mainly produced by evaporation. First, it is placed in a centrifuge, where it is cleaned of suspensions. Then it is heated in a special installation, the juice loses 15% of the water of the total volume and the aromatic substances contained in it, which are separately concentrated and packaged. The remains of raw materials without aromatic substances are clarified with enzymes, then passed through filters to obtain clear juice, then evaporated to obtain 70% dry matter.

Apple juice concentrate has a rich chemicalcompound. It contains the amino acids leucine, valine, lysine, serine, alanine, phenylalanine, tyrosine, asparagine, threonine, aminobutyric, aspartic, glutamic acids. It has a large amount of monosaccharides, but most of all it has amino nitrogen.

Lemon juice

Lemons are not made into concentrates like other fruits. The so-called concentrated lemon juice is in liquid form and is produced and sold by several businesses for home use in miniature plastic packages. Due to its taste, lemon juice is used in small quantities, and it makes no sense to make a thick concentrate from it and transport it in huge tanks.

Fresh lemon already contains highly concentrated juice. It is impossible to use it undiluted, it will cause irritation of the mucous membranes of the digestive organs and damage to tooth enamel, as it contains organic acids. Lemon juice is used in cooking as a dressing for salads, seasoning for meat or fish.

Grape juice

From fresh grapes juice is pressed, which is filtered until a transparent raw material is formed. From the resulting clarified juice, a concentrate is obtained in special apparatuses under vacuum. This method retains all the beneficial properties of grapes. The resulting concentrate is placed in a metal or glass container for storage or transportation. It should be stored at a temperature not exceeding 20 degrees.

Juiceconcentrated grape is used not only for subsequent recovery, but also in the production of wine, soft drinks, confectionery and dairy industries.

Myths about store juices

There is an opinion that packaged juices are not natural and are produced using preservatives or other chemicals. Having understood the production technique, which is actually simple and understandable, we can conclude the opposite: this is nothing more than a myth. Concentrated juices are a natural semi-finished product. Water is removed from it only for the convenience of transportation between countries. And when restored, it is added back, the juice acquires its original form with virtually no loss of useful components. The only permitted preservative in juices - sorbic acid - is safe for humans. Also, aseptic packaging without the use of preservatives for up to a year helps to preserve the freshness of the juice. In addition, juices reconstituted from concentrate retain all the benefits of the fruits from which they are made.