Influence of maltodextrin on the physical attributes of microencapsulated avocado (Persea americana Mill.) powder obtained through co-current spray drier

Spray drying is the highly accepted and widely followed technique for encapsulation of bioactive compounds. The efficiency of encapsulation is highly dependent on the encapsulating agent. This experiment was conducted in a view to check the suitability of different levels of maltodextrin as an encapsulating agent in spray drying of avocado powder. Spray drying at different maltodextrin levels i.e., 5%, 10%, 15%, and 20% were performed to evaluate the physical attributes of spray-dried avocado powder. Results showed that higher levels of maltodextrin favoured in achieving stability by minimizing the residual moisture levels and water Activity. Moreover, it significantly induced the free-flowing attributes of spray-dried powder.