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Ozone is a powerful oxidant capable of killing insects and microorganisms and has been used in the food processing industry in the gaseous and aqueous states. In a laboratory study, the susceptibility of immature stages of an important stored-product pest, the Indian meal moth, Plodia interpunctella Hubner to ozonated water was investigated. Ozone was applied in aqueous form at four concentrations (0, 2, 3 and 5 ppm) for four different periods (30, 60, 90 and 120 min) on eggs, larvae and pupae of, P. interpunctella. The results indicated that in all tested stages, the rate of mortality increased with increasing of concentration and exposure time. This study showed that 5-day old larvae were more susceptible than other stages (12-, 17-day old larvae, pupae and eggs) when exposed to 5 ppm ozone for 120 min. Following 5-day old larvae, 12-day old larvae, 17-day old larvae and pupae had the highest sensitivity to ozonation. At the highest concentration of ozone for the longest time, the least mortality rate was recorded for one day old eggs. According to these preliminary results, ozonated water has potential of reducing population density of P. interpunctella, one of the most important pests of dried fruits such as date, almond and pistachio, in storage.

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Chemical composition and physicochemical properties of pumpkin seeds and fatty acids of their oil were determined. It was found that the seeds contained 41.59% oil and 25.4% protein. Moisture, crude fiber, total ash, and carbohydrate contents were 5.2%, 5.34%, 2.49%, and 25.19%, respectively. The specific gravity, dynamic viscosity, and refractive index of the extracted pumpkin seed oil were 0.915, 93.659 cP, and 1.4662, respectively. Acid value (mg KOH/g oil), peroxide value (meq O2/kg oil), iodine value (g I2/100 g oil), saponification number (mg KOH/ g oil), and unsaponifiable matter content (%) of the extracted oil from pumpkin seeds were 0.78, 0.39, 10.85, 104.36, 190.69, and 5.73, respectively. Total phenolics compounds (mg gallic acid/kg oil), total tocopherols (mg α-tocopherol/kg oil), total sterols (%), and waxes (%) were 66.27, 882.65, 1.86, and 1.58, respectively. Specific extinctions at two wavelengths of 232 nm (K232) and 270 nm (K270) and R-value (K232/K270) were 3.80, 3.52 and 0.74, respectively. Gas chromatographic analysis of the pumpkin seed oil showed that the linoleic (39.84%), oleic (38.42%), palmitic (10.68%) and stearic (8.67%) acids were the major fatty acids. Compared with other vegetable oils, the present study revealed that pumpkin seed oil can be a valuable source of edible oil.

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Gundelia tournefortii L. is a well known plant in mountains of Iran and is found all over the country. It traditionally has some medicinal applications. In this research, Gundelia tournefortii L. seed was studied as a source of edible oil. Oil was extracted with immersion method using diethyl ether as a solvent. Acidity, saponification, ester, iodine, peroxide and refractive indices, average molecular weight of fatty acids, unsaponifiable matter, viscosity, color and density of extracted oil were evaluated. In addition, fatty acid composition of oil was determined using gas chromatography analysis. The results showed that seed oil content and saponification value of its oil were 22.8% and 166.05, respectively. Oleic and linoleic acid contents of oil were 27.99% and 54.59%, respectively. It was indicated that the extracted oil is an unsaturated oil and melts at ambient temperature. Beta-sitosterol and stigmasterol were the main unsaponifiable matters of the oil. Color analysis revealed that the predominant color was yellow (0.8 red, 14 yellow). The results indicated that Gundelia tournefortii L. seed can be potentially applied as an excellent oil for human consumption.

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The present study was conducted to determine the relative contribution of initial quality and compositional parameters to the rate of changes (RC_TPC) in the content of total polar compounds (TPC), which is considered to be one of the most reliable indicators of heated oils quality, of olive oil during continuous heating at 180 ºC. The ratio between monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids showed the highest relative contribution (44.86%) to the RC_TPC. The content of total phenolic compounds indicated a considerable contribution (30.76%) to the RC_TPC whereas the content of total tocopherols was found to be actually ineffective (0.01%). Peroxide value was another important parameter that showed a marked contribution (20.51%) in this regard. The contributions of acid value and initial TPC content to the RC_TPC of olive oil were 3.85 and 0.01%, respectively.

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In this study effect of temperature, O₂ concentration and storage time were investigated on respiration rate of uncoated and coated pear (Dargazi Cultivar) using Sclerorhachis platyrachis essential oil of 0, 125, 250, and 500 ppm. Mathematical model using Michaelis–Menten’s equation, with the model constants described by means of an Arrhenius-type relationship was applied to predict respiration rate at various temperatures (4, 10, and 25 ºC) and O₂ concentrations to design modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) of pear in order to extend its shelf-life. Results showed that all factors affected respiration rate of the pears but the influence of temperature was most pronounced. Increase in temperature led to increase of respiration rate and reduction of positive effect of essential oil on this parameter reduction. Moreover, after about 100 hours, respiration reached equilibrium. Respiratory quotient of Pears at 4 and 10 °C was on aerobic limit. However, at 25 °C, after 110 hours, and reaching CO₂ to 23%, respiratory quotient passed the critical point. Finally, package containing 3.7% O₂ + 8.1% CO₂ + 88.2% N₂ was suggested as an appropriate MAP for storing the pears (Dargazi cultivar).
 

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Kaymak or Sarshir, a traditional dairy product, is served in Iranian breakfast. The aim of this study was to investigate the fatty acids profile, physicochemical properties (texture, color, pH, acidity, the content of dry matter, fat and protein) and organoleptic aspects of Gilanvand and Dalirankaymaks in comparison to the heavy cream. To study more closely the texture and appearance differences of these products, scanning electron microscope (SEM) images were also prepared. The obtained results showed that the contents of fat and dry matter in heavy cream were higher than the kaymaks; however, Gilanvandkaymak had the highest protein content, acidity, and b*-value. Based on the study of the fatty acids profile, palmitic acid and cis-oleic acid were recognized as the most dominated saturated and unsaturated fatty acids, respectively. Microstructural analysis of SEM revealed that the structure of the protein in the fat field was compact, irregular and abundant in Gilanvandkaymak which influenced the product properties. The hardness, gumminess, and adhesiveness of the heavy cream were highest in comparison to the kaymaks. The Gilamvandkaymak obtained higher scores in evaluating the taste and total acceptance. In conclusion, it can be mentioned that the Gilamvandkaymak will have high potential in marketability by considering its higher protein content as well as total acceptance.

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The high levels of tomato production as well as its perishability, make the development of research on processing and improving the quality of existing products more evident. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of whole tomato heating treatment by steam on the physicochemical and structural properties of produced tomamto paste with different degree of Brix (°Br). The fresh tomatoes was washed with water followed by exposing to steam and the tomamto paste with different °Br (18-26) produced through hot breaking approach. The results showed that the color indexes, precentage of precipitation weight ratio, acidity, viscosity, consistency and microstructure of final products were significantly influenced by steam preheating. The color indexes of ^*a and b^* and precentage of precipitation weight ratio were negatively affected by steam preheating. The reason behind these observation is increasing the efficiency of heating process in hot breaking stage reulted in lycopene destruction. On the other hand, the viscosity and consistency of tomato paste were meaningfully increased. The images of scanning electron microscopy revealed that the steam preheating brought about solube pectin to migrate from cell wall, forming an amorph structure. Considering the acceptble range of color indexes as well as profound improvment in rheological characteristics of produced tomamto paste, in can be concluded that applying preheating treatment by steam would be of efficeint procedure in tomato paste production.
 

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In this study, the effect of low methoxyl pectin addition oi the three levels including 0.2, 0.4 and 0.6% on the structural properties of cream with 45% fat globules was investigated. Structural study of the dispersed phase was performed using particle size distribution method and the morphological properties evaluated by optical microscopic images. The results show the effectiveness of low methoxyl pectin on the size distribution of fat globules in the cream. The mean volume-surface of ​​fat globules in pectin-free cream increased from 2.28 to 4.65 μm in the sample with 0.6% low methoxyl pectin. Optical microscopic images demonstrated the morphological of fat globules change from spherical and solitary to the agglomerated form. On the other hand, increasing of low methoxyl pectin levels caused to increase the irregularity of particles size distribution in the images obtained from microscopic observation. Fractal dimension was calculated as an indicator for complexity quantification based on microscopic images. An increase in fractal parameter observed with increasing levels of low methoxyl pectin in the cream. On the other hand, a relationship with high coefficient of determination was observed between the changes in particle size and fractal dimension.

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Paste, as one of the main tomato products, has always been of great importance in the food. About 5% (w/w) of the entering the factories, despite their high nutritional and technological value, is discarded as waste. This study aimed to investigate the effect of adding different levels of tomato peel and calcium chloride and replacing the homogenization process with the colloidal mill on the properties of tomato paste through response surface methodology (RSM). The results of this study showed that the use of tomato peel caused a significant increase in the amount of total solids, water-insoluble solids, fiber, consistency and precipitate weight ratio (p <0.05). Applying a three-step homogenization process with a colloidal mill improved the viscosity of the product due to its effect on the properties of suspended particles of the paste matrix, including a significant size reduction, change in particle size distribution and increase surface area. Calcium chloride significantly increased the consistency of the product by reacting with the pectin in the paste and forming a gel network. Microscopic analysis of the samples showed that by increasing the number of homogenization steps from one to three and adding the tomato peel, the matrix uniformity increased and a dense structure was obtained. Creating new peaks and changing the peaks’ intensity at the ATR-FTIR spectrum confirmed the binding of calcium chloride and the fiber distribution in the paste network. The results of this study showed that tomato peel can be used as a consistency-enhancing compound in tomato paste and not only prevent the discarding of a large part of this valuable compound, but also create good added value for the food industry.

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The use of appropriate gluten substitutes such as gums can be useful in the production of products without this protein for people with chronic celiac disease. The purpose of this study was to investigate the characteristics of baked bread produced based on corn flour and the addition of Balangu Shirazi (Lallemantia Royleana) gum at three levels (zero, 1 and 2 g). For this purpose, a completely randomized statistical design was used (P<0.05). Based on the obtained results, the sample containing 1% of Balangu Shirazi gum has the highest porosity (18.5%) and the lowest firmness in the period of 2 h after baking (6.5 N) at the consumption level of 1% and 72 h after baking (10.6 N) at the consumption level of 2% gum was obtained. Also, with increasing the level of gum consumption, increasing the L^* colorful component and no significant change in the two colorful component a^* and b^* component in the crust and crumb texture of the produced bread were obtained. Observation of electron microscope images showed that by increasing the amount of Balangu Shirazi gum, it causes the formation of a network-like structure and can put more compression on the wall of the produced bread. Finally, by examining the marginal results of the sensory test, the sample containing 1% gum, compared to other samples, received a higher score from the sensory evaluators.