OPTIMUM RATIOS OF OKRA AND TANGERINE ON PRODUCTION OF MIXED JUICE WITH LYCOPENE SUPPLEMENTATION

The major advantages of Thai herbal plants are that there are good bioactive ingredients and antioxidants that are beneficial to the body are possible when used as a drink. There are research reports related to the production of various Thai herbal drinks and fruits such as okra and tangerine were used as raw materials. The optimum ratios were studied of okra and tangerine with lycopene supplementation on Thai herbal beverage production. There were four experiments: 1) blended okra juice and tangerine juice 50:50 (control); 2) blended okra juice and tangerine juice added with lycopene 60:40; 3) blended okra juice and tangerine juice added with lycopene 70:30; and 4) blended okra juice and tangerine juice added with lycopene 80:20. Physical properties (L*, color as a* and b* and percent of transmittance) were significantly different except for L* and a* value in all experiments. Chemical properties (pH, total acid and total soluble solids) were significantly different (P <0.05) in all experiments. The Sensory evaluation used a 9-point hedonic scale. The results indicated that Experiment 1 had the highest scores of overall liking. From the information obtained, the formulation of beverages produced from Thai herbal and fruit can be developed to be accepted by consumers, which has increased steadily and expanded in the large future level in the beverage industry.