Changes in Antioxidants and Sensory Properties of Italian Chocolates and Related Ingredients Under Controlled Conditions During an Eighteen-Month Storage Period

Abstract

Background: While there has been an increasing interest in the health properties of chocolate, limited research has looked into the changes of antioxidants occurring in the time span from production to the best before date, which was a period of 18 months in this study. Methods: Humidity, ash, pH, acidity, fiber, carotenoids, retinols, tocopherols, sugars, proteins, theobromine, caffeine, polyphenols, fats, the peroxide value, organic acids, and volatile compounds, along with the sensory profile, were monitored at 18-week intervals for 18 months under conditions simulating a factory warehouse or a point of sale. Results: At the end of the storage period, more polyphenols were lost (64% and 87%) than vitamin E (5% and 14%) in cocoa mass and cocoa powder, respectively. Conversely, a greater loss in vitamin E (34% and 86%) than in polyphenols (19% and 47%) was shown in the hazelnut paste and gianduja chocolate, respectively. The sensory profiling of cocoa mass, cocoa powder, and hazelnut paste revealed increases in grittiness and astringency, as well as decreases in melting, bitterness, and toasted aroma. Moreover, in the hazelnut paste and gianduja chocolate, oiliness increased with a toasted and caramel aroma. Furthermore, dark chocolate was more gritty, acidic, and bitter. Milk chocolate lost its nutty aroma but maintained its sweetness and creaminess. Conclusions: These results should contribute an important reference for companies and consumers, in order to preserve the antioxidants and understand how antioxidants and sensory properties change from the date of production until the best before date.

Cocoa Shell as a Step Forward to Functional Chocolates—Bioactive Components in Chocolates with Different Composition

“…It ranged from 0.73 mg GAE/g of defatted sample to 1.52 mg GAE/g of defatted sample for milk chocolates, and from 2.41 mg GAE/g of defatted sample to 3.61 mg GAE/g of defatted sample for dark chocolates, as determined by modified Folin-Ciocalteau method. The addition of cocoa shell reduced TPC, with more pronounced effect as cocoa shell content increased from 5% to 15% in dark chocolate; however, TPC in all analyzed samples was larger than reported by Roda and Lambri [ 13 ] for dark (2.12 mg GAE/g of defatted sample) and milk (0.64 mg GAE/g of defatted sample) chocolate. Belščak-Cvitanović et al [ 14 ] reported TPC content of approximately 3.5–5.5 mg GAE/g of defatted sample for milk chocolate and approximately 7.5–12 mg GAE/g of defatted sample for dark chocolate.…”

Traceability of polyphenols in cocoa during the postharvest and industrialization processes and their biological antioxidant potential

“…The same tendency was reported by Fernández et al. (2011) [ 55 ]. Furthermore, these TPC values are higher than in fruits such as grapes, acai, guava, strawberry, pineapples, soursop and passionfruit [ 63 ].…”

“…Examining at the industrialization process, it can be observed that one of the key steps is obtaining the roasted grains, where the TPC drops below 100 mg GAE/g [ 39 , 40 ]. After obtaining one of the main subproducts available in the market (i.e., cocoa liquor), polyphenol values are well below 50 mg GAE/g [ 77 ]; while cocoa powder shows values under 15 mg GAE/g [ 53 , 78 ]. Finally, the range of polyphenol content in chocolate preparations is wide due to the different available preparations of this cocoa derivative.…”

Fortification of chocolate usingMoringa oleiferaextract encapsulated in microemulsions

“…A small loss of antioxidant activity by 2.5% on average was also observed in all samples after 8 months of storage, as seen by DPPH inhibition values that decreased to 11.1-11.6% levels. This finding is in accordance with other similar studies regarding the effect of storage on the antioxidant capacity of chocolate products (Pavlovic et al, 2017) and is related to the degradation of major polyphenol compounds (flaval-3-ols, anthocyanins, catechins, procyanidins and proanthocyanidins) (Laličić-Petronijević et al, 2016;Pavlovic et al, 2017;Roda and Lambri, 2019).…”