PART 1 GENERAL PRINCIPLES

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION AND HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

1.1 Purpose of publication

Over the past several decades there has been a growing trend toward adding value to raw agricultural products. As populations have become more urban, this trend has accelerated. The need for stable, convenient foods has increased along with the demand for exotic products for international cuisine. Within the globalization of the food industry, the demand for quality juice and juice type beverages has markedly expanded. Traditionally, only a handful of fruit and vegetable juices have served this market as large multinational companies or their affiliates, have captured the majority of national and international juice trade. Juices such as orange, grape, pineapple, apple, tomato and blends are well established in developed countries. Now, minor juices, tropical juices and juice products are attracting new attention.

Trade and technical literature available reflect these trends. There is an impressive body of published plus increasingly, Internet information on all aspects of the juice and juice beverage industry. Juice processing technology ranges from individuals preparing juice at home for family consumption to multinational conglomerates with several interconnected high capacity plants and juice product lines serving global demands. However, there is far less attention paid to minor juices, small or local manufacture of such products and the specific problems faced by producers who have not shared in this growth.

The purpose of this publication is to present technical and business information designed to address issues facing small and medium-size juice processors along with insights into the theory and practice of juice and juice beverage processing and utilization. Both major and minor fruits will be covered with emphasis upon limited-resource producers for local markets. Unique, high quality juice products can secure a niche position. With attention to quality, value, safety, health and an innovative approach to these parameters, a manufacturer can move beyond the niche category and become a major player. This is a more difficult but feasible task.

There are some general principles that should be understood by anyone contemplating entering the juice processing business. Many aspects of production, postharvest handling, food safety, quality, unit operations, processing and packaging procedures, as well as regulatory control, are common to practically all juice products. Then there are a number of product-specific details, dependent upon the morphology, composition and character of the individual fruit. This publication will provide adequate details so interested parties can either improve existing operations or develop new processing establishments. Potential capabilities include adding value to local agricultural products, providing employment, augmenting the quality, safety, economy and diversity of the local food supply.

This entails a working understanding of food science and technology. In turn, it requires attention to the knowledge resources available though unevenly accessible globally. A good technical library with the latest texts, supplemented by complete journal holdings, abstract services and as their electronic equivalent, Internet linkages and on line search capability, is an expensive undertaking for even the most affluent institutions. Such facilities remain a remote possibility in developing countries. However equipment and access costs are dropping and the pace of information technology advances has never been faster and will have global implications.

Dramatic advances in information technology (IT) promise to greatly enhance technical information transfer in all fields, including Food Science and Technology (FST). When that time arrives, texts such as this will be on line with the key subject matter including hyperlinks to relevant references, sources of suppliers, national and international regulatory aspects and marketing information. Updating will involve periodically introducing new material and replacing obsolete information. The FAO Website (FAO, 2000a) is an excellent example of this evolving trend. However, hard copy texts provide the necessary insights and guideline for the near term.

Figure 1.1: 18th Century olive oil jar from Caribbean shipwreck.
Courtesy Florida State Museum

Elegant technology does not negate the need for a fundamental understanding and working knowledge of the science and technology behind juice manufacture. Sophisticated processing machinery, computer data acquisition and process control will not replace hands-on experience with specific commodities. Close observation and manipulation of a crop from breeding advances and cultivation to final juice consumption under varying circumstances will always be necessary. It is made easier by technology, but it is not replaced by it. In fact, the experienced juice technologist with a comprehensive understanding of local raw material, global practices can improve the efficiency and profitability of a juice operation.

International visitors to modern juice processing facilities are often in awe of the elegant, sophisticated, costly operations they view, unaware or forgetting the tremendous investment in human capital required to arrive at that point. Guests from even the poorer regions of the world should recognize that they possess untapped human resources, potentially skilled labour and, most importantly, an agricultural environment where many foods can be grown that are impractical to grow or process in the temperate zone.

Visitors may then recall vast heaps of fruits in their own country going to waste due to lack of markets or processing outlets. The logical conclusion is to consider developing a local juice processing industry based on the impressive operation they are viewing. This is, still, putting the cart before the horse. The many logistical and infrastructure hurdles, which must be overcome before the first fruit is processed will not be evident to most visitors.

Indeed, the rusting hulks of once modern food processing plants can be found in many regions of the developing world, a testament to inadequate planning by the international assistance community and their local counterparts.Fruits are ubiquitous in most temperate and tropical zones. There may be ample raw materials available for short seasons, which mostly goes to waste due to the lack of processing facilities. There are opportunities for small and medium scale producers who are unlikely to compete directly with major international firms. Yet there are untapped national markets. With a realistic attitude, attention to competitive advantages and a strong business commitment, growth including export opportunities are achievable goals. Challenges are great, but success has been achieved in the past and will be again in the future. We hope readers of this text will be among the successful ones.

1.2 Historical background

The manufacture of juices from fruits and vegetables is as old (or older) than agriculture. During the ripening process most fruits soften to the point where simply handling or transporting them yields more juice than flesh, albeit often partially fermented. The resulting pulpy fluid, easily separated from seed and skin, is generally more flavourful than the more solid portion. Hunter-gatherers could either consume quasi juices directly or collect the soft fruit in reasonably leak-free containers for later use. Simply transporting the fruit any distance soon guaranteed juice. Except for cool temperature climates, storage life was limited to mere hours before incipient fermentation modified the character of the juice appreciably.

Through trial and error humans learned practical ways of extracting juice from various sources and, most importantly, which attractive but toxic fruits to avoid. Tool making skills fostered the manufacture of devices for macerating fruits and extracting juices. Containers for storing foods, including receptacles for fluids were also devised from local resources, i.e. woven plant fibre and wood, clay soils and animal skin/intestine. Such methods and equipment can still be found in isolated pre-industrialized regions. Otherwise they are seen only in museums as prehistoric or early artifacts of extinct civilizations. Until fairly recently, liquid containers were quite primitive compared to those of the 20th century (Figure 1.1).

The perishable nature of juices dictated immediate consumption within less than 24 hours in warm climates and extended but still limited time in cooler environs. Natural chilling or freezing was the only alternative to microbial modification of the juice. Such fermentation was the basis for wine. It was found that the juice, after bubbling mysteriously, has a distinctly different character and affect on those consuming the product. Also, the material stored several days longer slowly turned harshly acidic or developed an even more unpalatable surface growth and taste. This early vinegar was used as a preservative for other fruits and vegetables. Grape domestication followed this discovery.

With the development of agriculture over the last 10 millennia, the cultivation of crops provided a fairly reliable source of food, including fruits appropriate for juice and beverage use. Unless the juice was consumed fresh, soon after pressing, fermentation was the likely, often desired consequence until preservation techniques were developed. In fact, the concept of maintaining a fruit destined for juicing in its whole, intact form until the juice is needed continues to be a sound principle. Even today, maintaining the fruit intact is one of the easiest ways of preserving juice quality.

1.3 The value of juice

The global market for juice and juice products was estimated to be about 50 billion litres in the late 1990s. In the United States of America alone, the retail commercial value of the almost 20 billion litres of juice and juice products exceeded US$18 billion, roughly 3 percent of a total food sales expenditure of US$630 billion. World trade has accelerated over the last decade with developing countries achieving over 60 percent of fruit juice exports. Brazil, the largest citrus producer, accounts for about 25 percent of world production. Juice utilization in decreasing order is: Orange, apple, grape and pineapple. (Brandon and Ferreiro, 1998; FAO, 1999).

Despite the more perishable nature of juices, there are many practical reasons for their manufacture, processing and increased consumption:

• The more delicate, soft fruits cannot be kept intact over long periods and tend to
• before or at harvesting. Juicing is the logical alternative,
• Even more durable fruit may have poor size, shape or blemished portions that preclude marketing them as fresh whole fruit. Upon trimming and careful inspection, the sound portion can be juiced. In this text, it will be continually emphasized that unsound fruit or those undergoing incipient spoilage are not recommended for juicing. However, use of sound culls represents a sensible, technically and economically valid utilization strategy,
• Juices can be consumed more conveniently than whole fruits. Envision a motorist in speeding traffic (cell phone in hand?) or a mother holding an active child, both motorists attempting to peel an orange vs. handling an easily opened juice container. "Dashboard dining" is a way of life for many, therefore juice products and clever packaging play a key role,
• The very young, elderly and infirm may have problems eating, let alone peeling certain fruits. Drinking juice is an effective, nutritious alternative,
• In addition to the nutritive value of juices and the additional health benefits from phytochemicals, recently recognized components of many fruit juices will
• the popularity of such products,
• Even flavourful juices, that may not be balanced nutritionally or which lack
• nutrients or phytochemicals, can be blended or act as effective carriers for other natural or synthetic nutrients such as vitamins, minerals and
• Fluid food products, including juices are easier to process, to heat, cool, freeze, standardize, transport, etc., than solid foods or fluids containing particulates. Thus processing efficiency, safety and quality norms are easier to meet,
• The ease of mixing fluids promotes development of unique blends of juices with other products and practical combinations not found naturally,
• Highly flavoured juices are the basis for a range of juice co-products, such as
• ice cream and confectionery flavours, smoothies, bakery ingredients, etc.,
• Modern processing, packaging, ingredient technology and distribution systems insure safe, stable and appealing juice and beverage products in a convenient, economical form far from the raw material source or season.

Perusal of food markets the world over, suggest that juices of all types and in all forms have an important role in both food nourishment and enjoyment (Table 1.1). This trend has certainly accelerated over the last half decade. Table 1.2 is an incomplete, but growing list of commercial wholesale juice products available in international trade. While some items or forms are now only custom manufactured in minor amounts, all could be scaled up upon demand. The goal of the food technologist is, therefore, to enhance the safety, quality and value and encourage the popularity of such products. Figure 1.2 contrasts the juice aisle in a well-stocked supermarket in the United States of America with a traditional market in Indonesia.

Figure 1.2: Food markets in Indonesia and the U.S.A.
Note the dramatic difference in food packaging and selection.

Table 1.1: Utilization of juices and co-products.

Table 1.2: Juices and juice ingredients in international trade partial list.