Roxana Nicoleta Rațu, Marius Giorgi Usturoi, Răzvan Mihail Radu-Rusu, Ionuț Dumitru Veleșcu, Florin Daniel Lipșa, Vlad Nicolae Arsenoaia, Alina Narcisa Postolache, Ioana Cristina Crivei, Petru Marian Cârlescu
ABSTRACT. Large amounts of chemicals with useful properties can be found in by-products of the processing of grapes. Consumer interest in functional foods has increased recently, with dairy products dominating this market. Constituents from grape-based by-products that are naturally occurring in grapes have the potential to enhance the functional qualities of dairy products and lessen environmental damage. As a result, the goal of this research is to provide crucial information on the use of grape skin powder as a helpful ingredient in the manufacture of cheese. In this study, grape skin powder (GSP) was added to cheese to increase its bioactive compounds content and antioxidant activity. Total phenolic content (TPC) was significantly greater in the enriched cheese (5.483±0.443 mg C3G/100 g DW). Adding 2% grape skin powder to the cheese formulation gave an increase of 0.295 mg CE/g DW of TFC and 2.046 mg GAE/g DW of TPC. The GSP-supplemented cheese also showed greater antioxidant activity than the control. This study demonstrates that grape by-products can effectively transfer beneficial compounds to cheese.
Keywords: food; functional; grapes by-products; quality.