ANNUAL REPORT, 1942 45 



Glass Container Research. (\V. B. Esselen, Jr., E. L. Moore, J. J. Powers, 

 and C. R. Fellers.) As previously reported it has been found that ascorbic acids 

 function effectively as antioxidants for glass-packed foods. Only that amount 

 of ascorbic acid needed to react with oxygen present within the sealed container 

 is beneficial as far as color and flavor changes are concerned. 



The results to date indicate that the addition of ascorbic acid to fruits and 

 vegetables naturally- low in vitamin C protected them from discoloration and 

 flavor changes. Ascorbic acid functioned successfully as an antioxidant for 

 peaches, pears, plums, and carrots; was only moderately successful with apple- 

 sauce and beets; and had no effect on such products as snap beans and peas, 

 known to be moderate to good sources of vitamin C. 



It was found that oxygen and the decomposition of ascorbic acid are the 

 principal factors involved in the darkening of packaged orange juice. The dark- 

 ening is accelerated by warm storage temperatures, but rate and intensity of 

 darkening were significantly afifected by exposure to intense light. 



Deleterious flavor changes in canned and bottled orange juice occur very soon 

 after the juice is packed, and are associated with the methods used in the prepara- 

 tion of the juice rather than with the type of container or the vitamin C content 

 of the juice. 



Tests conducted with glass-packed fruits and vergetables stored at room temp- 

 erature for one year showed that, under average commercial conditions, there is 

 no danger that light will cause the color to fade. 



The Antioxidant Properties of D-Iso Ascorbic Acid. (F. J. Yourga, W. B. 

 Esselen, Jr., and C. R. Fellers.) Preliminary feeding tests indicate that d-iso 

 ascorbic acid has an antiscorbutic potency about 1 25 that of 1-ascorbic acid 

 (vitamin C). 



Evidence has been obtained which indicates that d-iso ascorbic acid may be 

 used as an antioxidant to prevent or retard the oxidation of 1-ascorbic acid in 

 packaged foods. 



Fruit Jellies and Jams. (A. S. Levine, S. G. Davis, \V. H. Fitzpatrick, and 

 C. R. Fellers.) The beach plum {Prumis maritima) is characterized by a dis- 

 tinctive astringent flavor. It is relatively high in ash and carbohydrates and 

 slightly low in pectin as compared with some other varieties of plums. A number 

 of highly desirable products can be m.ade from this fruit, among which jam, jelly, 

 and butter are the most popular. Generally the fruit is deficient in pectin for 

 jelly purposes, and addition of pectin was found necessary for the production of 

 a high-grade jelly. No added pectin was necessary for the jam or butter. 



The substitution of pectin and corn sugar for cane sugar has been found feas- 

 ible in jelly making. While the jelly is of fair quality, it is somewhat higher in 

 cost and lacking in flavor when compared with jelly made with all cane sugar. 



Apple Products. (A. S. Levine, F. P. Griffiths, S. G. Davis, C. R. Fellers, J. 

 J. Powers, and W. B. Esselen, Jr.) A cider apple jelly of highly desirable taste, 

 flavor, and color was prepared by adding sweet Baldwin cider, concentrated to 

 one-third its original volume, to the heat-extracted apple juice from an equivalent 

 weight of apples. The amount of dry sugar added was about 60 percent of the 

 apple stock used. The remainder of the sugar was naturally present in the 

 added cider. The mixture of concentrated cider, extracted apple juice, and sugar 

 was concentrated by boiling to a soluble solids content of 68 percent by the usual 

 jelly manufacture procedure. Cider apple jelly is a distinctive product of at- 

 tractive color and appealing flavor, superior in quality to either apple jelly or 

 cider jelly alone. 



