Effect of spray drying on the microencapsulation of the blueberry natural antioxidants

LINGUA, M.S.; SALOMÓN, V.; BARONI, M.V.; BLAJMAN J.E.; MALDONADO, L.M.; PÁEZ, R. B.

Basel

Conferencia; The 1st International Electronic Conference on Food Science and Functional Foods (Foods 2020); 2020

MDPI Foods Editorial

Phenolic compounds obtained from blueberries have gained great attention due to their more effective bioactive roles in human health than whole berries. However, they are sensitive to environmental conditions and are therefore susceptible to degradation affecting their effectiveness. Microencapsulation of these compounds by spray drying provides a solution to these problems. This work aimed to study the effect of spray drying on the microencapsulation of the blueberry phenolic compounds to optimize the production of a powder rich in stable polyphenols. The phenolic extract from blueberries was spray dried under different conditions of inlet air temperatures (140 and 160 °C) and encapsulating agent concentrations (20 and 30% w/v), using maltodextrin (14.7 dextrose equivalent). The drying yield, moisture content, water-solubility, total and surface phenolic content, and encapsulation efficiency of total phenolic were investigated. The results obtained showed that the different conditions evaluated influenced on the drying yield, moisture content, surface phenolic content, and encapsulation efficiency of phenolic compounds. In this sense, the powders with the best characteristics were obtained with 30% w/v of maltodextrin at 160 °C inlet temperature. These powders rich in blueberry polyphenols stabilized by microencapsulation are easier to handle for application, so they could be used as functional food ingredients.