The Effect of Accelerated Storage Temperature Conditions on the Shelf Life of Pasteurized Orange Juice Based on Microbiological, Physicochemical, and Color Attributes

The accelerated life testing (ASLT) method was used to evaluate the effect of increasing the storage temperature from 10 to 40 °C on the aerobic plate count (APC), the pH, and the colorimetric parameters (L*, a*, b*) of pasteurized orange juice during 40 days of storage. For APC growth, a polynomial model was found to fit better, and at the lower temperatures of 10 and 15 °C, the shelf life was longer, as expected. More specifically, 15 and 10 days were needed, respectively, until the rise in the APC population to 1000 cfu/mL. However, for the temperature range of 30–40 °C, only approximately 3 days were needed to reach 1000 cfu/mL APC. Regarding pH, according to an exponential 3P model, a stable trend was apparent at all temperatures until 30 days of storage, followed by a more abrupt decreasing trend at 25 °C. The lightness (L*), redness (a*), and yellowness (b*) of the juice showed a decreasing trend with the temperature increase, and this trend was more profound at higher temperature levels. The multiple regression analysis between the predictors L*, a*, b*, pH, storage temperature, and the APC response showed an increase in APC growth when the colorimetric parameters decreased and the temperature increased.