Physicochemical and sensory acceptance of functional beverages from Ginkgo biloba seed extracts

Ginkgo biloba seeds are rich in nutrients and functional ingredients; however, the slow progress of research into processing and utilization has caused considerable waste. This research describes the enrichment of the functional ingredients used to prepare Ginkgo biloba seed extracts (GBSE) and aimed to develop a functional beverage formulated from GBSE and orange juice. The changes in the quality and antioxidant capacity of the formulated beverages during 120 days of storage were also investigated. The formulated beverages had good color and sensory acceptance. The addition of GBSE increased the content of vitamin C, the total phenolic content, and the antioxidant activities (DPPH, ABTS, and FRAP) of the formulated beverages. When 2% GBSE was added, the aforementioned indicators of the formulated beverage were the highest, at 90.43 mg/L, 46.62 mg/mL, 145.88 μmol TE/L, 637.41 μmol TE/L, and 2789.02 μmol TE/L, respectively. During storage, the color of the formulated beverage was stable and the titratable acid content significantly increased (from 1.34 to 2.32%). Vitamin C content and total phenolic content in the formulated beverages (2% GBSE) decreased from 90.43 to 36.22 mg/L and 46.62 to 34.05 mg/mL, respectively. As expected, the antioxidant activity decreased after 120 days of storage. The principal component analysis showed that the quality of the formulated beverage was stable during the entire storage period with the addition of 0.5% and 1% GBSE. These results indicate that the beverage formulated with GBSE had better sensory acceptance, functional ingredients, and antioxidant capacities after 120 days of storage.