Physicochemical and aromatic properties of iron-enriched tomato paste during storage

In this study, tomato paste was fortified with iron compounds at 25, 50, and 75 ppm concentrations. The effect of adding these micronutrient iron concentrations on the paste's physical, mechanical, aromatic, and chemical properties was evaluated every 15 days over a 60-day, storage period. The results indicated a gradual decrease in pH, total soluble solids (TSS), and taste index, alongside an increase in total acidity (TA) for all treatments throughout the storage period. The highest lycopene content observed in the Fe-25 % fortified samples at 43.05 mg/kg and the lowest in the control samples at 21.57 mg/kg. Positive values for a* and b* at the beginning and throughout the storage period confirmed the dominance of red and yellow hues in the tomato paste. Viscosity gradually decreased over time. During storage, growth and changes in mold spores and acid-resistant thermophilic bacteria were limited until the 30th day, and total microorganism counts were restricted until the 45th day. The overall accuracy of the support vector machines (C-SVM) and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) method in distinguishing samples into four groups (control, fortified with 25, 50, and 75 ppm iron) were 38 % and 62 % Overall, it can be concluded that increasing the iron micronutrient enhances the nutritional value and positively affects the physical, chemical, and microbial properties and the retention of aromatic compounds in tomato paste.