(166d) Effect of Processing Conditions and Investigating Vitamin B-12 Retention in Fortified Soymilk Powder

Singh, P¹*, Lin, C.H³, and Krishnaswamy, K^1,2

¹Department of Biomedical, Biological and Chemical Engineering,

²Division of Food, Nutrition and Exercise Science,

³Center for Agroforestry, School of Natural Resources,

University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA

Abstract:

Introduction:

The future food trend especially among Gen Z population in noted to gravitate towards plant based diet.. Various reasons for this shift could be due to health concerns, ethical beliefs, environmental effect, and the idea of plant-based food sources are more sustainable. However, plant-based foods contain insufficient amounts of vitamin B-12, which is essential to maintain neurological function, metabolism, and blood cell count inside our systems. Vitamin B-12 deficiency can cause anemia, central nervous system demyelination, stomach neoplastic tumors, and other diseases. Vitamin B-12 deficiency affects around 10-40% of total global pollution. Soybeans are a highly nutritious crop plant that is grown solely over the world, and there are a number of soy-based food products available on the market, with soymilk being one of the most popular among plant-based diet consumers. Due to high moisture content, soymilk has a limited shelf life and is susceptible to microbial contamination when environmental conditions change.

Method:

In the current study, soymilk was fortified with different concentrations of vitamin B-12 (1.2mg, 2.4mg, and 3.6mg) and spray dried. Spray drying settings were determined based on an optimization study conducted early in the project (inlet temperature 140 °C, aspirator 90%, and feed rate 15%). A comparative study of vitamin B-12 retention in soymilk (liquid medium) and spray dried soymilk powder was conducted. Fortified soymilk and spray dried soymilk powder were stored for 15 days at refrigerator (4°C) and room temperature (25°C), followed by vitamin B-12 quantification to evaluate retention at both temperatures using HPLC-MS/MS. In addition, the physiochemical characteristics, reconstitution, rheological, particle, and thermal properties of vitamin B-12 fortified spray dried soymilk were investigated in order to determine the powder quality and customer acceptability. Furthermore, the in vitro release profile of optimized concentration of vitamin B-12 (2.4mg) fortified soymilk powder was examined by in- vitro digestion stimulating mouth, stomach, and intestinal media. The JMP 14.0.0 software was used to evaluate the fit model and compute statistical statistics for powder characterization parameters.

Result:

The experimental data from all combinations demonstrate that high amount of vitamin B-12 retention in fortified spray dried soymilk powder. Vitamin B-12 retention increases with increase concentration of vitamin (1.2mg, 2.4mg & 3.6mg) in the spray dried soymilk powder. After storing the powder at 4°C and 25°C, no notable changes were observed in vitamin B-12 retention. Soymilk, on the other hand, retained a large level of vitamin B-12 regardless of storage temperature (4°C & 25°C) or duration (15 days). However, the quality of soymilk begins to deteriorate after 4-5 days at refrigerated temperature and after 2 days at room temperature. Furthermore, the results of the powder quality measurement show that as the concentration of vitamin B-12 increased, the color changed from light to intense pinkish in hue, the powder flowing property were in the excellent to good flowing range (excellent to good), the moisture content was less than 5%, the dispersibility was 80-90%, the water solubility was 60-70%, and the hygroscopicity was 4-5% range. Advanced powder properties, such as viscosity, thermal degradation behavior, particle size distribution, particle size, shape, and morphology, are also fall under acceptable range. Based on in-vitro release profile experimental data, the highest amount of vitamin B-12 release was recorded in the intestine.

Significance:

The retention of vitamin B-12 in spray dried soymilk powder may help researchers better understand the impact of high temperature processing on vitamin B-12 activity. Because vitamin B-12 is an essential ingredient that must be consumed on a regular basis, soymilk enriched with the vitamin could be a smart way to protect the population from vitamin B-12 deficient disorders. Fortified soymilk powder could be used for a variety of purposes, including developing reconstituted beverages, infant formulation, and dietary supplements. Therefore, this study has laid the foundation to open opportunities and further commercialize the vitamin B-12 fortified soymilk powder in the plant-based food sector.