Abstract

Quality properties of concentrate pineapple juice obtained by block freeze crystallization (BFC) and evaporation technology are investigated. After three concentration cycles, the solutes were approximately 3.2 times compared to the initial condition and the final color was darker than that of the fresh juice. BFC allowed for higher bioactive compounds retention than evaporation in terms of total phenolic, flavonoid, and anthocyanin content. The cryoconcentrate juice showed a similar aromatic profile to the fresh juice, with 26 and 23 compounds, respectively. Conversely, only seven volatile compounds were identified in the evaporate sample. Finally, BFC is an effective technology to preserve important quality properties from fresh fruit juices such as color, polyphenols, and aromatic profile.