ANSWER

In beverage applications, adding ascorbic acid is common, especially beverages made from fruit juices. It is a substance that is used to preserve food by retarding deterioration or discolouration due to oxidation (Ensminger et al., 1993).

Ascorbic acid prolongs the shelf-life of foods by protecting against deterioration caused by oxidation. It is a type of antioxidant vitamin that prevents oxidation of fruit beverages by decreasing the available oxygen in the environment (Lateef, 2011). Antioxidants act as oxygen scavengers as the presence of oxygen in food helps bacteria growth that ultimately harms the food (El-Samragy, 2012).

As an antioxidants, ascorbic acid can effectively retard the oxidative deterioration with the resultant occurrence of off flavours, off odours and discoloration. It can improve the colour and palatability of fruit beverages (Parihar, 2013).

References

El-Samragy, Y. (2012). Food additive. Rijeka, Croatia: Intech.

Ensminger, M. E. & Ensminger, A. H. (1993). Food & Nutrition Encyclopedia. USA: CRC Press.

Lateef, S. S. (2011). Analysis of ascorbic acid, citric acid and benzoic acid in orange juice. USA: Agilent Technologies.

Manso, M. C., Oliveira, F. A. R. & Frías, J. M. (2001). Effect of Ascorbic Acid Supplementation on Orange Juice Shelf Life. Acta Hort. (ISHS), 566, 499-504.

Nicoli, M. C. (2012). Shelf life Assessment of Food. USA: CRC Press.

Parihar, K. (2013). Vitamin C in Food Processing.