Effects of encapsulating agents on anthocyanin retention in pomegranate powder obtained by the spray drying process

• Gum arabic and Capsul mixture gave the highest retention of the pomegranate powder anthocyanins.
• 90% of the dehydrated pomegranate juice anthocyanins were preserved after 3 months of storage.
• The pomegranate powder has potential as a food additive due to its high anthocyanin stability.

The present work evaluates the effect of different encapsulating agents (gum Arabic, modified starch Capsul™ and maltodextrin DE 5) on anthocyanin retention in microcapsules produced by spray drying of raw pomegranate juice. A high concentration of anthocyanins is required in order to obtain a product that can be used as a functional ingredient. An accurate quantitative and qualitative analysis of the anthocyanins in the pomegranate juice and in the microcapsules was carried out by High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). Using the simplex-centroid experimental design employed here, the gum Arabic and Capsul™ (1:1) mixture, obtained a high retention (up to 70%) of total monomeric anthocyanins (delphinidin, cyanidin and pelargonidin 3-O-glucosides and 3,5-O-diglucosides). Pomegranate powder was stored at 25 °C for 3 months in laminated packaging and about 90% of the monomeric anthocyanins were preserved. In order to evaluate this product as a natural colorant for food, the anthocyanins in the microcapsules were also evaluated for color analysis. The results indicated a color hue with a predominance of red.