Effect of cultivar, pasteurization and storage on the volatile and taste compounds of strawberry puree

An untargeted GC-MS approach was performed to study the stability of the volatile fraction and taste of five different single-cultivar strawberry purees during pasteurization (95 degrees C/1 min) and accelerated storage (14 d at 35 degrees C). The PLS-DA results showed that the volatile fraction varied markedly among the cultivars in fresh purees; with Honeoye and Sengana exhibiting the most distinctive profiles with more than 8 discriminative markers. However, the differences among the five cultivars remained similar upon pasteurization and storage. Pasteurization generally resulted in changes on the volatile fraction, that could be cultivar dependent, and decrease in glucose and fructose. The contents of hexanal, alcohols and some esters decreased whereas acetate esters increased. During storage, losses of esters, alcohol terpenes, hexanal and the formation of off-flavors (e.g. dimethyl sulfide, alpha-terpineol and hydrocarbons) occurred for all cultivars, whereas sugar contents remained constant. Food manufactures should pay attention to an adequate raw material selection as the strawberry cultivar strongly influences the volatile fraction and taste of the resulting puree after pasteurization and during storage.

Automated summary

The study showed that different cultivars of strawberry purees maintained their distinctive volatile fraction and taste characteristics during pasteurization and storage. Pasteurization typically led to changes in the volatile fraction, while storage resulted in the formation of off-flavors. It is important for food manufacturers to carefully select raw materials as the strawberry cultivar can significantly influence the volatile fraction and taste of the resulting puree after pasteurization and during storage.