Evaluation of Browning Effect in Fresh Whole Wheat Pasta Raviolis: Effectiveness of Cultured Dextrose and Ascorbic Acid

Oxidative browning of plant foods such as vegetables and wheat is a major problem for the food industry as it can lead to significant quality and economic losses. Food color in whole-wheat based products such as pasta ravioli is a major factor in consumer acceptability, where undesirable color changes, such as oxidative browning, result in product rejection by consumers and cause significant profit losses for the food processors. It is of economic importance to develop a method to measure the quality of fresh pasta color and the effectiveness of anti-browning agents, such as cultured dextrose and ascorbic acid, in slowing oxidative browning. This study will clearly help pasta food manufacturers and product managers identify gaps within their quality control system, adopt a new method of measuring color changes within each of their products prior to mass production, select the most effective antioxidant or anti-browning agents for various pasta products, and ultimately, reduce the overall cost associated with product failure and rejection by consumers.