Orange Juice Processing Techniques
Translated by
ScribdTranslationsOrange Juice Processing Techniques
Translated by
ScribdTranslationsORANGE JUICE PROCESSING
Ellen Cristina Souza
Discipline: Food Preservation
by Thermal Processing
Prof.: Thereza Chistina Vessoni Penna
São Paulo–SP
April 6, 2012
INTRODUCTION
The first sweet orange seeds were introduced to Brazil around 1530.
in 1540, in the states of Bahia and São Paulo, by the Portuguese. Due to the climatic conditions
favorable ecological conditions found here, the plants developed satisfactorily and the
Starting in 1930, citrus cultivation became a commercial source in the states of São Paulo and Rio de
January and Bahia.
Brazilian citrus farming has great economic and social importance for
the country, being the largest exporter of frozen concentrated orange juice besides
other derivatives, generating billions of dollars annually.
Most of the orange produced in the country, about 80%, is processed in
concentrated frozen orange juice form, a product of great importance in the agenda of
Brazilian exports, mainly to Europe and the United States. For better
utilization of orange components, the juice goes through high processing
extraction and concentration technology.
Aiming for a high value-added product and excellence in quality,
several steps are carried out in the processing of orange including clarification stages that
they are essential for the quality of the product, ensuring the stability of the juice and its lifespan
on the shelf (validity). By completing all these steps, one can expect a product of
excellent nutritional value, safe and with a pleasant taste, aroma, and appearance.
When it comes to quality control, the entire process must be considered.
productive and the production environment, standardizing operations to achieve maximum
of productivity and to ensure that the quality of the product is not compromised.
1. ORANGE JUICE PROCESSING
The processing of orange juice follows the flowchart described below:
Figure 1. Flowchart of the Processing of Concentrated Orange Juice
1.1. Reception and Storage
The excellence of any industrial product is conditioned by perfection.
from the raw material used. So there will be no good product if it is manufactured with
disqualified raw material. Therefore, raw materials must undergo strict control.
from its receipt.
It is important for the company to monitor from the cultivation process,
determining the most suitable ways to obtain fruit appropriate for obtaining
high-quality products at the end of the process. This quality depends on time.
time elapsed between harvesting and processing can be extremely affected. Thus, the
Transport from the farm to the industry should be done in the shortest time possible. They should also
to be aware of the characteristics of the raw materials, taking care regarding the
parameters of physiological maturation, which correspond to a chemical composition and
development of the desirable inherent characteristics to meet processing.
transport temperature is another factor that must be taken into account. In addition to this, the
boxes must be washed and dried, as moldy boxes accelerate the deterioration of fruits
during storage.
Upon arriving at the factory, the trucks unload the oranges onto elevators.
hydraulic systems and then fall onto rubberized conveyor belts, which direct them to a
bucket elevator. At this stage, a preliminary selection of broken fruits is made or
damaged, causing them to return to the trucks along with the empty boxes.
The oranges to be used are taken to storage in storage silos that
they should be cold places or, at least, well-ventilated.
Ideally, the raw materials should be processed immediately after the
receipt, for the longer the storage time, the more advanced the state will be
deterioration. The storage conditions vary greatly according to the characteristics of the
raw product, especially regarding temperature, humidity and conditions of the
proximities of the warehouses.
While waiting for processing (up to 48 hours), the fruits are
stored in silos with vertical and horizontal subdivisions to limit the weight on the
oranges from the lower layers (there cannot be a column of oranges higher than one)
metro) and allow the identification and access to the different batches whose analyses are known
(made at the reception).
The fruits of each subdivision of the silos are unloaded independently.
through successive ramps, where they roll smoothly to a lower exit. The orange batches
are analyzed for their acidity, amount of soluble solids (Brix degrees) and yield of
juice. In this way, the mixing of fruits from different batches occurs, achieving uniformity in
produced product.
1.2. Cleaning
The cleaning of the raw material is necessary for the elimination of impurities.
like soil, dust, and plant debris, and hazardous health contaminants, controlling the load
microbial and the chemical and biochemical reactions that may hinder the subsequent process and
to jeopardize the quality of the final product.
In the cleaning process, there should be minimal waste of noble product.
avoiding injuries, and a balance should be established between cleaning costs and the need for
produce a food of good quality.
The oranges, collected from the silos, are washed by spraying with water and cleaned.
with a solution of detergent and bactericide (chlorine), whose action is enhanced by the use of
nylon rotary brushes that remove the most stubborn dirt from the shell.
The state of the surface of the material after the cleaning operation is
extremely important, as the damaged outer cells darken quickly, and surfaces
Cut or injured moist areas lead to colonization by microorganisms and insects.
After the first washing process, the oranges are transported on rollers.
that they sprinkle a chlorinated water solution on all points of the oranges, so that they are
rinse, eliminating the previous solution and dragging away the dirt, thus reducing the
microscopic contamination of the surface, which could contaminate the juice in the stage of
extraction.
1.3. Selection
This is the stage of separating raw materials by their quality, evaluating the
presence of defects, mainly regarding color or degree of deterioration.
The oranges are selected visually and manually by trained personnel.
using a roller system. In this process, those that are cracked or
bruised, which are contaminated by microorganisms that hinder preservation of
fruit and may interfere with the extraction since the equipment is set for a whole fruit
and not cracked or damaged.
1.4. Pressing
Pressing is a mechanical action of forces on the fruit so that there is
separation of the liquid contained inside it. The pressing of the orange can be done through
from a more modern extraction method that allows separating the essential oil from the juice, or
It can simply promote the crushing of the fruit by mixing the juice with the oil.
In the most modern method, the whole orange is pressed by a glass with
grooves, forcing it over a tube with a sharp edge, which goes into the pulp and removes from it a
small cylinder in its central part. This cylinder descends through the interior of the tube leaving it
free.
The pressure increases, disintegrating the pulp of the fruit, releasing the oil.
flavedo) that flows separately with the aid of jets of water. The acquired material goes through
a conditioner (mill) that reduces the fragments of the shell, forming an emulsion with
the water and the relatively uniform and fluid oil, which is broken in a tank, allowing a
first separation, by centrifugation.
The liquid that comes out of this centrifuge passes through a second centrifuge.
that promotes filming for oil cleaning. The clear oil obtained is preserved in
drums, at temperatures between 0°C and 2°C.
1.5. Clarification
The clarification aims to eliminate suspended particles present in the liquid.
obtained. For this, a clarifying product (organic or mineral) is added, which by adsorption
electrostatics coagulates the suspended particles, causing the formation of flocs, which will
gaining weight, and end up precipitating, being subsequently dragged out of the tank.
The freshly extracted juice is separated from the pulp or skin fragments.
if only the roughest suspension by a special continuous operating centrifuge and
automatic cleaning. However, this operation does not eliminate the characteristic cloudiness of the juice.
citrus.
1.6. Standardization
The clarified juice from various batches of orange is sent to tanks (Farm
Tank) from where samples are taken for chemical analysis. At this stage the
juices are mixed and corrected in Blenders Tanks, with the addition of correctives and additives,
in such a way that there is uniformity in the content of sugars and acids, in coloration and in
I like.
1.7. Pasteurization
Pasteurization, or thermal treatment, prior to concentration is performed to
eliminate most of the microorganisms, aiming to inactivate the pectinesterase enzymes, which
they destroy the stability of the turbidity and make the liquid become clear in the upper portion,
changing its natural appearance.
The treatment is performed at a temperature close to 92°C for 45 seconds.
in a plate heat exchanger with steam or hot water circulator, to ensure the
impediment of fermentation in the juice.
If the process is carried out on simple pressing equipment that
keep the essential oil together with the orange juice, a step is necessary
deserialization so that lipid oxidation does not occur, as the presence of this oil promotes
an increase in the production of dissolved gases in the juice (30-50 mL/L) which include oxygen
in amounts ranging from 2.7 to 5 mL/L that cause the oxidation of its components
changing taste, aroma, and color. However, the reduction of dissolved oxygen in the juice by
de-aeration operation helps to reduce vitamin C losses.
1.8. Concentration
The concentration is carried out in the plate evaporator through heating.
and decompression causing the juice to boil at a temperature of 75°C. The vapors of
Juice is extracted and concentrated in a vacuum system that allows for boiling,
temperature of 54°C.
After this process, the juice enters an instant cooler, carried out in
short period of time, where the system decompresses, its temperature drops to
approximately 27°C. At this temperature, the concentrate proceeds to the following steps of
refrigeration, freezing and packaging.
1.9. Refrigeration
Refrigeration consists of lowering the temperature of the product, to the
product preservation under conditions that offer a desirable quality for consumption.
This operation is carried out in order to delay chemical reactions and enzymatic activity, well
to delay or inhibit the growth and activity of microorganisms in food.
The orange juice concentrate is kept in 3 moving tanks for
uniformity of temperature and composition. At this stage, samples are taken for tests.
from the laboratory and, when necessary, corrections are made. The concentrated cold and composition
the uniform fluid passes through 2 plate heat exchangers, which cool the juice in 2 stages.
concentrated from 25 °C to 7°C, and then, from 7°C to -7°C, and afterwards it is packaged.
1.10. Packaging
The product packaging can be in the form of metal drums of 50, 100
200L, where the concentrate is placed inside a double plastic bag, with capacities
varied used for export. For local consumption, the product is packaged in cans.
(190, 350 and 1000 mL) or plastic containers of up to 1L, which have an internal coating
special for orange juice
1.11. Warehousing
The concentrate, packaged in suitable containers, is stored in chambers.
cold at a temperature of -28°C.
BIBLIOGRAPHIC REFERENCES
EMBRAPA. Production System for Small Citrus Producers in the Northeast.
Embrapa Cassava and Tropical Fruit, Production System, Vol. 17. Dec/2005.
NITZKE, J. A. The Food Fair - Food and New Technologies at UFRGS. Available
em: <[Link] Accessed on: 04/04/2012.