Cottage Processing of Black Plum (Vitex doniana) into Juice in Katsina State, North-Western Part of Nigeria

Abstract

Black plum (Vitex doniana) is among the perishable fruits which, if not processed, would get contaminated by microorganisms. The equipment such as extractor, filter press, pasteurization pot, and a capping machine were fabricated for processing black plum fruits into juice. The processing of fruits into juice started with sorting, washing, extraction, filtration, pasteurization, bottling, and capping. The juice yield, capacity, and efficiency of the extractor were found to be 75.8%, 1.56 kg/min, and 92.2%, respectively. Pasteurization temperature, which ranges from 36°C to 90°C, affected the proximate composition and pH of the juice. The increase in pasteurization temperature showed an increase in crude protein, crude fibre, ash, and pH, while other parameters such as carbohydrate, moisture, and fat changed differently. The research showed that variation in pasteurization temperature affects the proximate composition of black plum juice. Attaining a temperature of 60°C was recommended for black plum juice pasteurization.