This investigation was to evaluate fruit color and study the effect of processing on color quality of strawberry products. Three color instruments with different viewing angles, viewing areas, and sample presentation geometries were compared for their effectiveness in measuring CIEL*C*h(o) color values for fresh fruits of 6 strawberry genotypes. There were significant differences between genotypes as well as between instruments. Fruits from the Totem genotype were frozen, canned, and made into jam. Color changes were measured along with the following compositional determinations: total monomeric anthocyanins (ACN), total phenolic content (TPC), and percent polymeric color. ACN in fresh strawberries ranged from 37.1 mg to 122.3 mg per 100 g of fresh fruit. Freezing resulted in an apparent increase in ACN and transfer of 70.2% of the anthocyanins from the berries into juice. Physical transfer of pigments to syrup also occurred with canning: there was approximately 70% loss in ACN, about 20% increase in polymeric color, and 23.5% decrease in TPC. Pronounced color change and substantial losses in ACN and TPC of strawberry jams occurred during processing and 9 wk of storage. Storage of jams at 38 degrees C compared to 21 degrees C over a period of 9 wk resulted in marked losses of ACN and TPC.

The formation of zinc-chlorophyll-derivative complexes was investigated in peels-on green D'Anjou pears when subjected to blanching in zinc ion solution (1300, 2600, and 0 ppm) at 94 degrees C for 6, 12, or 18 min and then canning at 94 degrees C for 20 min. The peels removed from the pears were freeze-dried and ground into powders in liquid nitrogen for pigment extraction using ethyl ether. The visual absorption of the extracts was measured using a spectrophotometer along with identification and quantification of chlorophyll derivatives using reverse-phase HPLC method. Furthermore, pears with or without the peels were blanched in 2600 ppm of zinc solution for 12 min following the canning process in 10 degree Brix syrup solution. Total antioxidant (TA) and total phenolic content (TPC) of the pear flesh and peels were evaluated using Folin-Ciocalteu's phenol and 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl assays. Thermal processing destroyed chlorophylls on pear peels, in which pheophytins were found to be the major degraded compounds while an insignificant amount of pyropheophytins was also formed. In zinc blanched peels, Zn pheophytins a was the dominant green compound, and its amount increased about 100% and 144.4% in peels blanched in 1300 ppm zinc solution for 6 and 12 min, respectively. When blanching peels in 2600 ppm zinc solution for 6 and 12 min, the pigment increased about 118% and 242%, respectively. Significant reductions in TA and TPC were found on the peels of zinc treated pears, but the overall TA and TPC of whole fruits were not significantly affected by the treatments.

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: The interest in developing peels‐on thermally processed (canned) green pears has prompted the investigation of retaining green pigments during thermal processes. Use of zinc ions as a processing aid for the retention of green pigment and surface pretreatment to remove waxy layer and a part of the top cuticle layer of the peels for enhancing reactions of zinc ions with chlorophylls in peel tissues were studied. Whole pears or pear chunks were subjected to zinc treatment during presoaking in 5200 ppm Zn2+ solutions for 60 min or blanching at 94 °C for 6, 12, and 18 min in a 1300, 2600, or 5200 ppm Zn2+ solution for identifying the most appropriate procedures for retaining green peel pigments. Pears were then thermally processed in glass jars at 94 °C for 20 min after commercial canning. Canned pears were subjected to an accelerated shelf life test in rooms set at 10 °C, 21 °C, and 38 °C under fluorescent light. CIELAB L*, a*, and b* color values of pear samples were monitored during storage up to 35 wk. Results showed that surface pretreatment is essential for ensuring the reactions of zinc ions with green pigments, thus retaining green pigment during thermal treatment. Blanching pears in zinc solution containing about 1300 ppm Zn2+ was effective in obtaining attractive green‐colored canned pears. Hue angle and ‐a* (greenness) values of canned pears were significantly (P < 0.05) associated with blanching time and zinc concentration in blanching solutions, and remained stable over 19 wk of storage under intensive illumination at all 3 temperatures. The technology used zinc ions as a processing aid, thus significantly minimizing the zinc content in the final processed pears.

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