Determination of Nutritional Composition and Effect of Various Storage Conditions on the Vitamin C Content in Garcinia Dulcis, in Fresh and Dry Form

This study was carried to determine the nutritional properties of fresh Garcinia dulcis fruit, an indigenous fruit growth in Sabah, included proximate content of moisture, ash, crude protein, crude fat, crude fibre, total dietary fibre and total carbohydrate, vitamin C as well as several minerals content. The effect of different drying techniques and storage conditions on the vitamin C content in dried Garcinia dulcis was investigated. The fruit slices were separated into four groups which subjected to four drying techniques, which were sun drying, hot air drying at 50C and 60C and vacuum drying, and dried to the moisture content of 16 ± 1 %. After drying, the sample was subjected to four storage conditions, which were dark and air-tight, dark and non-air-tight, light and air-tight and light and non-air-tight, and the vitamin C content was analyzed for sample subjected to each condition once per 7 days of storage until 28 days of storage. From the analysis, the nutritional properties of fresh fruit with the content of moisture (86.64 ± 0.21 %), ash (0.68 ± 0.01 %), crude protein (0.59 ± 0.03 %), crude fat (0.40 ± 0.02 %), crude fibre (1.89 ± 0.04 %), total carbohydrate (9.80 ± 0.18 %) and total dietary fibre (8.21 ± 0.38 %), vitamin C (6.88 ± 0.33 mg AA/100g ww) and several minerals (potassium, 64.63 ± 0.02 mg/100 g ww; phosphorus, 7.79 ± 0.13 mg/100 g ww; calcium, 7.59 ± 0.06 mg/100 g ww) were determined. The hot air drying at 50C and vacuum drying retained highest amount of vitamin C among the four drying techniques just after the sample was dried. The best storage conditions for all the drying techniques were dark and air-tight conditions. It was found out that the drying technique interdependent to each other in order to retain the highest content of vitamin C in dried Garcinia dulcis sample for a longer period of time.