Cereal Bar Development Using Exotic Fruit

Edmilson Rabelo Torres , Everton Santana Castroa, Roneval Felix de Santanab, Juliana Cordeiro Cardosoa,b,
a

Cleide Mara Faria Soaresa,b, Álvaro Silva Limaa,b,*

a
Universidade Tiradentes, Aracaju-Sergipe, Brasil
b
Instituto de Tecnologia e Pesquisa, Aracaju-Sergipe, Brasil, *E-mail: alvaro_lima@unit.br

ABSTRACT
Nowadays, the consumption of fast-foods and snacks has increased, but the desire for healthy and functional
foods increased at the same rate. In this sense the development of cereal bars formulation presents itself as an
emerging force for this niche market. The aim of this work was development some formulations of cereal
bars using exotic fruit such as jenipapo (Genipa americana) and jackfruit seed (Artocarpus heterophyllus).
The jenipapo was dried at 50oC for 6h and jackfruit was cooked for 70 min. The cereal bars was formulated
using dry raw material (bran of oat and rice) and agglutinative ingredients (glucose syrup and honey). The
exotic fruit was added to the base formulation at different incorporation percentages. The cereal bars were
evaluated for sensory characteristics, texture, proximate and mineral composition. It was verified that
incorporation of jenipapo (5%) and jackfruit seed (15%) produced cereal bars with the highest notes for
sensorial attributes (above 7). The cereal bars with jenipapo and jackfruit seed present hardness of
1,794.93±572.12 g and 1,137.47±275.19, respectively; and 456.58±193.50 and 258.99±75.60 g/s,
respectively. These values are similar to those found for the cereal bar base (without exotic fruit)
1,101.80±331.12 g and 294.72±76.57g/s to hardness and crispness, respectively. The fiber content for cereal
bar with incorporation of 5% jenipapo and 15% jackfruit seed was 19.2 and 25.5 fold high that the cereal bar
base and the calories decreased by 14% when compared with commercial cereal bar. According to the results,
exotic fruits, properly prepared, can be used to formulate new cereal bars that showed characteristic regional,
functional aspect and calorie reduction.

Keywords: cereal bars; jack fruit seed; jenipapo; development.

ITRODUCTIO
The consumption of fast food and snacks increased significantly in recent years, revealing a trend of change
in lifestyle of the population. This is due to the facilities for the purchase of food pre-prepared, frozen and
ready market. Among these foods stand out the snacks, which are defined as small meals, light or substantial,
and may be related to the attributes of healthy and/or fun [1]. Because of the growing consumer demand for
healthy, natural and convenient foods, attempts are being made to improve snack foods nutritional values via
modifying their nutritive composition. Cereal bars are a popular and convenient food and, therefore, would
be an ideal food format to deliver fruit-derived phenolic antioxidants and fibre [2].
Cereal bars were introduced in the last decade as a wholesome alternative of comfit when consumers show
more interest in health and diets. The association between cereal bars and wholesomeness foodstuffs is a
well-documented tendency in industrial food [3,4].
The greatest difficulty in obtaining a good cereal bar is a combination of several ingredients with specific
functionality such as vitamins, minerals, proteins, grains, fibers, thickening agents, sweeteners and
flavorings, and turns them into a product with flavor, texture and decent appearance, while it tries to achieve
goals specific nutrient [5]. The development of a product is essentially a problem of optimization. In the
search for the best formulation, the main objective is to determine the optimum levels of the components or
key ingredients, which are the independent variables or factors and the dependent variable or response is the
objective to be optimized [6].
A tool used to chose the best formulation of a product is the sensory analyze, which is based on fundamental
psychological perception and physiological techniques. Hedonic scales are used by experts and untrained
consumers, which the best results are obtained using an untrained panellists [7].
Some ingredients can be used for the formulation of cereal bars, including exotic fruits and organic residues
are still in the enrichment of this product. Papers report the use of cashew nut [5], passion fruit [8] and
amaranth [9]. Among the tropical fruit, in Northeast Brazil can be found jenipapo and jack fruit. Jenipapo is 8
to 10 cm long and 6-7 cm in diameter, weighing 200 - 400g consist of a wrinkled skin, thick, soft, brown or
brownish - yellow, representing 9.56% of total fruit pulp and 73.81%, with very characteristic odor strong,
sweet taste, acidic, involving numerous flat seeds (16.63%) [10]. The jack fruit is the largest tree-borne in the
world, contend 8-15% of the fruit weight is seed. The seeds are 1.90 to 3.81 cm long and 1.27 to 1.90 cm
thick and are rich in carbohydrate and fiber [11].
The goal of this research is obtained cereal bars using exotic fruit (jenipapo and jack fruit seeds) in different
composition and compare sensorial and physic-chemically the cereal bars developed with standard and
commercial formulations.

MATERIALS & METHODS

Materials: The jenipapo pulp, jackfruit seed and all the raw materials to produce the cereal bars was
purchased of local market from Aracaju-Sergipe, Brazil. The fruit and seed were sanitized with sodium
hypochlorite, washed and drained. The jenipapo was dried at 50oC for 6h and jackfruit was cooked for 70
min. The chemicals were acquired from Labsynth (Brazil) and had analytical grade.
Cereal bar formulation: The cereal bars was formulated using dry raw material (bran of oat -35% and rice –
15%) and agglutinative ingredients (glucose syrup – 25% and honey – 25). The exotic fruit was added to the
base formulation at different incorporation percentages. The agglutinative ingredients were heated to 95oC
and added to the dry ingredients, and then the bars were molded (9x3x1, 5cm) and cooled to -20oC for 10
min, packaged in aluminum and stored in a cool dry place at 25oC.
Centesimal composition: The cereal bars were evaluated for their physical-chemistry characteristics, in
triplicate (n=3). The crude protein as N x 6.25 was determined by the Kjedahl method total lipids was
analyzed by the Soxhlet method, ash was evaluated by burning the sample at 550oC, total dietary fiber was
determined of Wood method, moisture was analyzed in an oven at 105oC until constant weight [12]. The
water activity (aw) was measured using a hygrometer (Aqualab, Decagon 3TE). Carbohydrate were calculated
by the difference method (100-water-protein-lipid-ash-fiber) and energy values (cal) were evaluated applying
the factor 4, 9 and 4 for each gram of protein, lipid and carbohydrate, respectively [13].
Texture analysis: After 4 days of storage, the hardness and crispness were determined using a texture
analyzer (Stable Micro System, TA.XT2), coupled with the Software Texture Expert with probe TA-45, the
test velocity was 1mm.s-1and the distance between probe and sample was 8mm. Analyses were performed in
triplicate on two points, one at the end and one in the middle of the bar.
Sensorial evaluation: A panel of 60 consumers recruited from faculty, staff and students at the Tiradentes
University. Criteria for selection were that panelists were between 18 and 60 years of age and regular
consumers of cereal bars and not allergic to any raw material used. Panelists were instructed to evaluate the
sensorial attributes such as appearance, taste, flavor, texture and overall linking. A 9-point hedonic scale with
1= dislike extremely, 5= neither like nor like dislike and 9= like extremely was used [14].
Statistical analysis: Sensory data were analyzed using the Statistical Analysis System (SAS Institute Inc.,
Cary, NC, USA, 1995). Significance mean values were separated using the Least Significant Difference
(LSD) test. The variance analyze (ANOVA) was evaluated by detect significance difference (p < 0.05)
among the samples. The standard deviation of carbohydrate and energy values was obtained to error
propagation.

RESULTS & DISCUSSIO

The cereal bars were formulated with jenipapo and jack fruit seeds in different concentration (5, 10 and 15%)
and evaluated by sensorial analyze of acceptability. The notes of attributes sensorial to cereal bars with
jenipapo and jack fruit seeds were shown in Table 1 and 2, respectively. The scores decreased with
increasing the incorporation of jenipapo from approximately 7.0 (like moderately) to 5 (neither liked nor
disliked). Statistical analysis showed that the cereal bars with 5% of jenipapo were different from those
containing 10% and 15%, which were statistically similar (p ≤ 0.05) among themselves. It was also observed
that all cereal bars formulated with jack fruit seeds did not differ significantly (p < 0.05) for all sensory
parameters analyzed. In most cases, the notes for the sensory attributes were approximately 7.0 (like
moderate). Thus, the formulations with 15% of jack fruit seeds and 5% of jenipapo were chosen to compare
the sensorial, physico-chemical and texture characteristics among cereal bars standard, commercial and
formulated with exotic fruits.
 Table 1. Acceptability tests for different cereal bars with jenipapo incorporation
Incorporation (%) Appearance Flavor Taste Texture Overall linking
5 7.07a 6.47a 7.13a 6.67a 6.63a
a,b b b b
10 6.10 5.43 5.73 5.07 5.90a,b
b b b b
15 5.27 5.27 5.30 4.73 4.67b
* Values in a column not followed by the same letter are significantly different (p < 0.05)

Table 2. Acceptability tests for different cereal bars with jack fruit seeds incorporation
Incorporation (%) Appearance Flavor Taste Texture Overall linking
5 7.43a 7.50a 7.43a 6.70a 7.17a
a a a a
10 6.80 7.20 7.30 6.47 7.10a
a a a a
15 7.30 7.23 6.93 6.17 6.97a
* Values in a column not followed by the same letter are significantly different (p < 0.05)

The cereal bars formulated with exotic fruits were compared with two commercial products, the first
commercial banana flavor contained honey, glucose syrup, oatmeal, banana, rice flakes, soy flour, modified
starch, vegetable fat from palm oil, sugar, cinnamon, salt, citric acid and stabilizer soya lecithin, the
commercial banana flavor contained glucose, rice flakes, banana, oat flakes, maltodextrin, corn flakes,
banana puree, sugar, palm oil, brown sugar, honey, salt, stabilizers, soy lecithin and sodium bicarbonate and
antioxidant tocopherol.
The sensorial analyze results were shown in the Table 3. The cereal bar standard and those formulated with
jenipapo and jack fruit seed were extremely similar, as show the Figure 1. This observation is in agreement
with the sensory analysis results to appearance attribute, which did not significant difference (p < 0.05) for all
cereal bars. In general, the cereal bars had similar acceptance, with sensory note above 6.17. Freitas and
Moretti [15] obtained average scores for sensory evaluation of cereal bars banana flavor below of all score
observed in this work (6.39 - appearance, 6,42 – flavor, 5.29 – texture and 6.14 – overall linking).

(A) (B) (C) (D) (E)

Figure 1. Cereal bars aspect. (A)- standard, (B)- commercial 1, (C)- commercial 2, (D)- with jenipapo 5%
and (E)- with jack fruit seeds 15%.

Table 3. Comparison of acceptability of cereal bars with different formulation, standard, commercial, 15% of
jackfruit seed and 5% of jenipapo
Cereal Bar Appearance Flavor Taste Texture Overall linking
Standard 7.40a 7.10a,b 7.20a,b 7.13a,b 7.10a,b,c
a a a a
Commercial 1 7.13 7.60 8.13 7.40 7.73a
a b b a,b
Commercial 2 7.10 6.37 6.43 6.70 6.70b,c
a a,c b b
Jack fruit seed 7.30 7.23 6.93 6.17 6.97a,b,c
a b,c b a,b
Jenipapo 7.07 6,47 7.13 6.67 6.63b,c
* Values in a column not followed by the same letter are significantly different (p < 0.05)
The texture analyze results are presented in Table 4. The hardness values ranged between 942.01 (g) and
1900.04 (g), but the values did not statistically different (p ≤ 0.05) among themselves. For the crispness
attribute the change was 156.27 (g.s-1) 456.58 (g.s-1). The bars with jenipapo 5% and standard were similar
when compared with commercial cereal bars. Comparing the sensory analysis for attribute texture and the
instrumental value for this parameter, we can see that the cereal bar namely commercial 1 had the highest
score for texture, but the value for hardness and crispness were the lowest values. As conclusion, the values
of hardness and crispness influence in the acceptance of the cereal bars. Some authors have reported hardness
values in their research. Paiva [16] obtained an average hardness of 1670.90 (g) for cereal bars based on the
rice chimera and vegetable residues. Freitas [17] obtained an average hardness of 1182.7 (g) for cereal bars
containing textured soy protein and wheat toasted germ, and Matsuura [8] obtained an average hardness of
1701.26 (g) for cereal bars of passion fruit residues. These values were close to those found in this work.

Table 4. Comparison of acceptability of cereal bars with different formulation, standard, commercial, 15% of
jackfruit seed and 5% of jenipapo
Cereal Bar Hardness (g) Crispness (g.s)
Standard 1101.80±331.12a 294.72±6.57c
a
Commercial 1 942.01±245.92 156.27±45.88a
b
Commercial 2 1900.04±254.51 367.38±85.13b,c
a
Jack fruit seed 1137.42±275.19 258.99±75.60b
b
Jenipapo 1794.93±572.12 456.58±193.50a,c
* Values in a column not followed by the same letter are significantly different (p < 0.05)

The centesimal composition of cereal bar is presented in Table 5. It is verified that the content total fiber of
cereal bars formulated with jenipapo (5%) and jack fruit seeds (15%) were 19.2 and 25.5 times, respectively,
higher than the cereal bar standard, and above 13.8 and 6.0 times when compare with cereal bars commercial
1 and 2, respectively. Therefore, the cereal bars formulated in this work could be considered as foods rich in
fiber. The protein content was very low (approximately 0.05 for all bars). The incorporation of exotic fruits
allows smaller amounts of carbohydrates, a reduction of approximately 14% of energy. Some authors report
their research in the physical-chemical values of cereal bars. Lima [5] using cashew to produce cereal bars,
verified 7.40% of moisture, 9.73% of protein 1.63% of ash, 9.70% of lipids and 5.84% of fiber, Freitas and
Moretti [15] produced cereal bars on the basis of textured soy protein and wheat germ, toasted, with values of
10.71% moisture, 15.31% protein, ash 2 20%, lipid 5.64%, 5.17% fiber and 60.97 carbohydrates and
Gutkoski [18] obtained cereal bars based-oats, the content was protein - 9.79%, lipid – 5.17%, fiber – 10.69%
and carbohydrate - 58.88%. Compared these levels are close to those obtained with the bars formulated in
this work, except to protein content.

Table 5. Comparison of centesimal composition of cereal bars with different formulation, standard,
commercial, 15% of jackfruit seed and 5% of jenipapo.
Composition Standard Commercial 1 Commercial 2 Jack fruit seed Jenipapo
Moisture (%) 21,82 ± 0,14a,c 15,40 ± 1,26b 18,99 ± 2,59b,c 23,46 ± 0,61a 18,56 ± 0,52b,c
Ash (%) 0,88 ± 0,01ª,c 1,20 ± 0,01b 1,42 ± 0,01c 0,89 ± 0,02a 0,75 ± 0,05d
a a a a
Protein (%) 0,04 ± 0,00 0,05 ± 0,00 0,05 ± 0,00 0,05 ± 0,01 0,03 ± 0,00a
b d c ,b,c
Lipid (%) 3,35 ± 0,14 10,45 ± 0,44 6,66 ± 1,52 4,27 ± 0,27ª 3,61 ± 0,25a,b
a a b d
Fiber (%) 0,61 ± 0,04 0,85 ± 0,19 1,81 ± 0,14 11,72 ± 0,32 15,47 ± 0,25c
Carbohydrate (%) 73,31 ± 0,20 71,68 ± 1,51 71,08 ± 3,01 59,61 ± 0,74 61,61 ± 0,63
Energy (Kcal.100g-1) 323,50 ± 0,58 380,96 ± 3,29 344,42 ± 7,55 277,02 ± 1,68 278,99 ± 1,48
* Values in a line not followed by the same letter are significantly different (p < 0.05)

COCLUSIO
The highest incorporation of jenipapo and jackfruit seed in cereal bars, with greater sensory acceptance, were
5% and 15% respectively. The comparison of the textures, physic-chemical and sensory characteristics of the
cereal bars formulated with exotic fruits and the standard and commercial cereal bars indicate that the exotic
raw materials can be use to formulated cereal bars, besides the reduction approximately 14% of caloric value
and increase the content fiber in the cereal bar.
AKOLEDGEMETS
We would like to thank Fundação de Amparo a Pesquisa e Inovação Tecnológica do Estado de Sergipe –
FAPITEC for financial support.

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