Varietal Blends as a Way of Optimizing and Preserving the Anthocyanin Content of Pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) Juices

Anthocyanins are unstable compounds prone to degradation during storage of pomegranates juices, leading to disadvantageous color changes. Blending varietal pomegranate juices could be useful not only to preserve the genuine characteristics of fresh juices but also to study different factors affecting anthocyanin stability while maintaining to the utmost the matrix studied. The effects of critical factors such as anthocyanin concentration, pH, and endogenous ascorbic acid on pigment integrity were assessed through the study of the degradation kinetics of pomegranate phytochemicals in blended juices made from two distinct cultivars ('Wonderful' and 'Mollar de Elche'). Pigment concentration and pH were the factors affecting anthocyanin stability, whereas ascorbic acid did not alter the degradation of anthocyanins. These results contributed to the definition of the so-called "cultivar effect" and to preserving to a great extent the anthocyanin load and color characteristics of fresh varietal juices, avoiding phytochemical degradation and browning development during storage.