Forecasting and quality control of confectionery products with the use of “water activity” indicator

Abstract

For confectionery products, the value of water activity is mainly determined by their moisture and sugar content in a recipe. Along with the preserving effect, sugar is involved in the formation of organoleptic, functional and technological products properties; it also regulates their acidity, lowers water activity, which increases water binding energy in material and reduces probability of microorganisms’ development. To reduce sugar content in products, white cane sugar is replaced by other sugars, sugar substitutes, or “new generation” sweeteners, which differ in their chemical nature, sweetness degree and technological properties (including water-binding ability). To obtain a specific confectionery product with specified consumer properties, it is necessary to make a technologically justified choice of the most suitable raw materials and semi-finished products (you need to know the chemical composition, humidity and water activity amount). The purpose of the study is the generalization and systematization of the information available in the scientific and technical literature on the value of the water activity indicator of raw materials, semi-finished products and confectionery products; obtaining new experimental data on the value of the water activity index in a number of “new generation” sweeteners sold in the Russian market. By controlling the moisture content and Aw indicator value of the products, it is possible to forecast the intensity of various physicochemical, biochemical and microbiological processes during products storage, to create “Stability maps of confectionery products depending on water activity” and to produce products with the required shelf life.

Physicochemical and Sensory Stability Evaluation of Gummy Candies Fortified with Mountain Germander Extract and Prebiotics

“…The a w value of confectioneries, including gummies, is affected by their moisture content, as well as sugar profile. In addition, the contents of salt and components acting as humectants also affect the a w value [ 35 , 37 ], which is defined as the ratio of the vapor pressures of the product to plain water, or the ability of the molecule to escape the surface of the product [ 35 ]. The a w values of the soft confectionaries, including gummy candies, fall between 0.45 and 0.75 [ 5 , 36 ].…”

“…The herein obtained values of 0.69–0.79 were in the upper limit of the expected range, which probably resulted from the somewhat higher moisture content, in addition to the compositional profile of each formulation. According to Plotnikova et al [ 37 ], the formulated gummy candies fall into the category of products with an intermediate humidity, for which oxidative, microbiological and enzymatic processes are possible. For the obtained values, the microbiological stability implied the susceptance to the growth of molds and yeasts [ 35 ].…”

Proximate Composition and Caloric Content of Halwa Produced in the Urban West Region, Zanzibar

“…The capability of products to uptake or lose moisture during storage is determined by the difference between the relative humidity (RH) of the environment during storage and the equilibrium relative humidity of the product [14]. The greater the difference in equilibrium relative humidity between adjacent components in multicomponent products, the stronger the moisture migration to the product side and the shorter its shelf life [15]. Moisture content is intricately linked to the shelf life of halwa.…”

Investigation of the low-temperature exposure effect on the water activity of food products

“…Многочисленными экспериментами было установлено, что активность воды влияет на биологические, физико-химические и микробиологические процессы, протекающие в пищевых продуктах (Макарова, 2018;Марков, 2020;Mathlouthi, 2001;Chen, 2019). В некоторых странах показатель «активность воды» является одним из обязательных при определении качества и безопасности продуктов (Сафонова, 2017;Plotnikova, 2021). Например, в США он включен в инструкцию по контролю качества пищевых продуктов (Plotnikova, 2021).…”

“…В некоторых странах показатель «активность воды» является одним из обязательных при определении качества и безопасности продуктов (Сафонова, 2017;Plotnikova, 2021). Например, в США он включен в инструкцию по контролю качества пищевых продуктов (Plotnikova, 2021).…”