Examining consumer acceptability of prekese syrup as non - alcoholic beverage

Abstract

In recent trends, consumers seek beverages or drinks that help improve on their health status due to the increasing rate of diseases and sicknesses hence most non-alcoholic drinks on the market have an additional value of health benefits. The main objective of this project was to develop a consumer acceptability of „prekese‟ syrup as non-alcoholic beverage. Consumer acceptability of prekese syrup, and the shelf life of the drink were studied. Prekese drink production includes several stages: the prekeses are selected, washed, pulps are cut from the fruits, water and leave are added to boil for 30 minutes to soften the pulp, the pulps are removed from the stock and blended, juice is extracted from the blended pulps, juice is added to the stock, stock is boiled again until it becomes sticky, leave to cool and packaged. It was found that sample PT3 of 50g prekese syrup, 100ml of water, 20g of sugar and 100ml of milk was the most appealing sample for all the sensory attributes, i.e., colour, aroma, taste, and overall acceptance during storage. The keeping quality of Prekese Syrup at an ambient temperature of 26°C and a refrigeration of 5°C for seven (7) days performed better. The rate of vitamin C degradation was also slower in the refrigerator than that under ambient temperature. The microbial analysis revealed that the total coliforms, Staphylococcus aureus, yeast/mould and total plate count indicated that there were few Staphylococci aureus and yeast/mould (<10), no total coliforms, with a total plate count of one (1) in both varieties of drink under the two storage conditions for the seven (7) day storage period). The study concludes that Prekese Syrup beverage is preferred and acceptable by consumers. Further research is needed to consider preparing Prekese Syrup by taking children into account. Studies on shelf-life beyond the seven days should and on packaging effect on storability should be carried out to determine the type of packaging that can best prevent interaction between the environment and the product.