Physico-Chemical Properties, Probiotic Survival and Sensory Acceptability of a Liquid Oats-Based Beverage

Abstract: In the present thesis were studied oat based real fruit puree products. The aim was to create a new synbiotic beverage by combining the health benefits of the probiotic bacterial strain with the prebiotic ones derived from the β-glucans in oats. This new synbiotic oat-based real fruit puree beverage called Nordic Berries Skaka Smaka consisted of 48% whole-grain oat substrate and 52% Nordic berries fruit puree, and was inoculated with the bacterial strain of Prevotella copri DSM18205. Factors such as physic-chemical properties and the stability of the products within their life-span were analyzed. The new synbiotic product, was examined in different aspects (eg. pH, viability of strain, organoleptic characteristics) for 20 days under different storage conditions such as temperature and acidity level. It was found that the addition of the specific strain into the oat-based real fruit puree product was not affected by the used different storage conditions. Two sensory tests were performed, one hedonic and one in focus group for the Nordic Berries Skaka Smaka product. In both of them, panelists presented a willing to buy the new Nordic berries Skaka Smaka product, but only if the beneficial health effects are targeted in its package.