TECHNICAL FIELD

The invention relates to the technical field of food and it relates to a production method for obtaining pekmez in appropriate color scale, pH values and health standards from the must obtained by modern or traditional methods from fruits such as grapes, mulberries, carob, apricots, figs, apples and pomegranates.

The invention mainly relates to the application of new and additional process steps instead of the process of acid removal and the addition of pekmez soil for clarification of the color during pekmez production with modern or traditional methods from must. Thanks to the invention, the necessity of using pekmez soil, which has many negative effects in the current art, has been eliminated and a more suitable pekmez production has been carried out for human health.

PRIOR ART

Pekmez is most commonly produced from fresh grapes and raisins, such as apples, mulberries, apricots, plums, watermelons, figs, sugar corn and sugar beets. Each type of pekmez is indicated by the name of the fruit from which it is produced.

In the present art, for obtaining pekmez the process steps of 1) collecting the raw materials to be produced with pekmez, 2) washing, 3) obtaining must by pressing, and 4) acid removal and clarification are applied with the addition of pekmez soil or calcium carbonate, and the production process steps are continued by adding the type of pekmez to be obtained after the said 4th process step and the final product is pekmez. In conclusion, the process steps including acid removal and clarification with the addition of pekmez soil or calcium carbonate, which is the 4th process step for the production of all pekmez varieties, are common.

Pekmez is a food traditionally produced in the geography of Turkiye for centuries. Although it varies according to its region and fruit, traditionally the fruits collected first in the production of pekmez are softened. These fruits are collected in small bags, crushed and dehydrated by pressing on them. These bags are then collected in a large boiler, filtered first with a strainer or bag and separated from the fruit particles. Then, pekmez soil is added and boiled in a high wood fire.

In today's technology, almost all traditional production processes have been modernized. Special enzymes are used to soften the fruits, and machines such as presses are used to crush and dewater the fruits. A separator or drum filter is used for filtration. In the boiling process, pekmez is obtained by preventing the formation of HMF, which is much safer than that traditionally obtained by using an evaporator and due to excessive heat treatment.

The must obtained from the fruits during the production phase of pekmez - in both traditional and modern methods- is a fuzzy liquid in the range of 3-4 pH. The said liquid should be both clarified and its pH level should reach 6-7 during pekmez production. The pekmez soil, which is largely composed of calcium carbonate, performs this task. As a result, the function of pekmez soil is to adjust the color and pH value for the must in pekmez production.

Pekmez added for the clarity of the must allows the organic products suspended in the must to form a precipitate by forming a salt with calcium. The sediment formed afterwards is physically separated from pekmez. The pH adjustment takes place as a result of the neutralization reaction of the basic calcium carbonate, which constitutes the majority of the pekmez soil, with the acid in the environment.

In the literature, the patent with the application number 2019/00433 relates to the production method of healthy consumable tangerine pekmez with shortened production time from tangerine in the food sector and without additives. In one of the process steps, pekmez soil is added for clarity and acid removal.

The patent with the application number 2019/00406 relates to the method of production of persimmon pekmez, pressed pomegranate and walnut sausage from Trabzon dates to ensure a longer life consumption of Trabzon dates, which have rich nutritious content and strong antioxidant properties but cannot be widely consumed due to their short shelf life. With the processes of separating approximately 50 kg of fully ripe Trabzon dates from the stems and dividing them into small pieces, starting to be cooked by placing them in a wide container, mixing them at certain intervals until they boil with about 5 kg of water and about 2 kg of pekmez soil, lowering the boiling product from the heat and placing it in cloth bags, taking the sap water of the product filtered from the bags and cooking it again in a container for 4 hours and then lowering it from the heat and leaving it to cool, the production of palm pekmez is carried out by following different steps to these processes. In the current art, while pekmez soil is a frequently used component for obtaining pekmez with the desired properties, it is known that pekmez soil has many harmful effects. Today, pekmez soil cannot meet the demands of consumers for purer and cleaner products. Pekmez soil, which is a natural material, contains heavy metals and especially lead (Pb) load from the areas where it is obtained, residues and a large number of substances containing risk in terms of food safety arising from the product's impurity. This mixed content of pekmez soil causes problems in the production of modern pekmez as follows:

• High heavy metal load; heavy metals are substances that we do not want to take into our bodies under any circumstances and that cause many serious discomforts as a result of their accumulation. In the food we eat, very small amounts of lead, mercury or arsenic accumulate in our bodies over time. These substances, which are very harmful to human health, have been prevented by legal limitations. On the other hand, if heavy metals come in food raw material, they cannot be removed from the food afterwards. In the production of pekmez, fruit, water and pekmez soil are the points where heavy metals can mix with the final product. Therefore, even if taken by various analyses, pekmez soil poses a great risk of heavy metals for pekmez.

• The high amount of residue: especially with the formation of the organic food sector and its strengthening and spreading in recent years, consumers have become aware of the residues. Residues, especially chemical pesticide residues from pesticides, pose a risk to our bodies, even in very small amounts. This risk increases even more especially for babies whose immune system is still developing. Therefore, in modern pekmez production, raw material is subjected to very sensitive residue analyses and pekmez soil cannot pass through these analyses.

• Other impurities: pekmez soil contains 80-90% calcium carbonate. The remaining ratio consists of other mineral impurities. These impurities appear as either sediment or ash in pekmez production. The sediment is formed as a result of various impurities in pekmez forming a precipitate with calcium and other minerals. This precipitate, which customers visually dislike, is separated from pekmez during production by physical methods. Ash, which is one of the legal criteria of pekmez, indicates the amount of inorganic substance in the product and TGK is also legally limited. The impurities that come with the pekmez soil increase the amount of ash in the pekmez. The amount of ash cannot be reduced physically or chemically. Calcium carbonate with a purity of 99% or higher can also be used instead of pekmez soil. This substance is not financially suitable for use in food production in significant quantities, except that even impurities less than 1% cause problems. Unfortunately, the cost of using this substance corresponds to approximately 25% of the pekmez final product sales price.

As a result, it has become necessary to make an innovation in the production method to obtain pekmez at the appropriate clear color scale, pH values and health standards for consumers in the relevant technical field.

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a novel pekmez production method for the food technical field that provides solutions to the aforementioned problems and provides additional advantages for the relevant technical field.

The object of the invention is to provide a production method for obtaining pekmez at appropriate pH values, clear color scale and health standards.

The object of the invention is to eliminate the process of adding pekmez soil or calcium carbonate, which is harmful to human health, for acid removal and clarification, which is the step of the pekmez production process,

To achieve all these purposes, the invention relates to a pekmez production method, which includes the process steps of i) collecting raw materials to produce pekmez, ii) washing, and iii) obtaining raw must by pressing to obtain the must, the raw material of the pekmez production, at suitable pH values, clear color scale and health standards. It is characterized in that it comprises the application of the following process steps instead of the use of pekmez soil to make the clarification and pH values suitable, which are one of the steps of the pekmez production method,

• transferring the said raw must to columns comprising anion and/or cation resins and contacting the said anion and/or cation resins, after this process, it is ensured that the pH value of the raw must reaches from 3-4 levels to pH 5-7 levels, filtering the must whose pH value has been made suitable in the ultrafiltration device to make it free from impurities, sediments or solid particles that cannot pass through the holes with specified diameter values, wherein the filter diameter values are at most 100 microns.

In the possible embodiment of the invention, the flow rate of the raw must to the column is a value in the range of 50 to 150 L/min. Preferably, the flow rate of the raw must to the column is a value in the range of 75 to 125 L/min. The most preferred must flow rate to the column is 50 L/min.

In the possible embodiment of the invention, the temperature of the must is in the range of 40 to 75°C. Preferably, the temperature of the raw must is in the range of 50 to 70°C. The most preferred temperature of the raw must is 65°C.

In the possible embodiment of the invention, the Brix values of the must are in the range of 20-25 ² .

In the possible embodiment of the invention, the ultrafiltration process of the must, which is brought to the appropriate pH values, is carried out for a period of 0.01 to 0.05 min/L.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In this detailed description, the subject of the invention relates to the food technical field and it relates to a production method for obtaining pekmez from the must obtained by modern or traditional methods from the fruits such as grapes, mulberries, carob, apricots, figs, apples, pomegranates in appropriate clear color scale, pH values and health standards and it is explained with examples that do not have any limiting effect for a better understanding of the subject.

As the first process for the production of pekmez of the invention, it is possible to obtain must by the processes of collecting, washing and pressing fruits such as grapes, mulberries, carob, apricots, figs, apples and pomegranates.

As it is known in the art, the must obtained from various fruits is a fuzzy and dense sedimentary liquid; its pH values are about 3-4. In this invention, this form of must is called raw must. The innovative aspect of the invention is directed to the raw must and the processes for bringing it to the appropriate color scale and pH values. The first obtained raw must is delivered to a column containing anion and cation resins to bring it to the desired pH values. The said resins ensure that the pH values are optimized by contacting with the raw must. As a result of these processes, the must contacted with the resins is chemically treated with the components in the resin and the pH values reach 6-7.

The inventors have determined some parameters for the must to reach optimized values while passing through the resin-containing column, these parameters are the determination of the flow rate of the must from the column, column temperature, and appropriate must Brix values.

The column flow rate of the raw must of the invention when passing through the resin columns is in the range of 50 to 150 L/min. Preferably, this value is in the range of 75 to 125 L/min. Most preferably, the column flow rate of the must is 100 L/min.

The temperature of the raw must of the invention when passing through the resin columns is in the range of 40 to 75°C. The preferred temperature is in the range of 50 to 70°C. The most preferred temperature is 65°C.

The raw must of the invention has a value in the range of 20 to 25° Brix after separation from the resin columns.

The must obtained in the modern or traditional pekmez production stages of the invention are transferred to resin-containing columns. The columns mentioned herein can be obtained from any material that provides the appropriate conditions for the healthy operation of the resin system. In a preferred embodiment, the columns consist of stainless steel tanks.

The resins usable in the invention are anion and/or cation resins. The said resins are selected from dowex 88 mb, dowex 66, trilite MA-20, dowex marathon A, termax tulsion A62, termax tulsion MB115, purolite A870, Resin Purolite A133, trilite MA-12, and prolite A103.

The inventors have also conducted studies to make the resins used to make the pH values of the raw must suitable for pekmez production and to ensure their long-lasting use. As a result of the aforementioned studies, the following data were obtained; • The raw must should be given to the column containing the resins at the appropriate flow rate, with this criterion, the pH value change time of the must is adjusted. The flow rate of the raw must in the column and the contact time of the raw must with the resin are adjusted so that both the life of the resin can be calculated and the duration of the whole process can be calculated;

• The pass capacity of the resin should be optimized, this criterion refers to the life of the resin. The resin, which has a high throughput capacity, is used for a longer period of time. In contrast, mutual analysis of this criterion with the cost of the resin should be performed;

• It is necessary to determine the optimal Brix of the must, as well as the different operating temperatures of each resin, the operation of which varies according to the Brix value of the product passing through it;

• Determination of the appropriate temperature, each resin has an optimal operating temperature. This value should not change the HMF value of the product passing through it. HMF value rises at high temperatures and goes beyond the legal legislation, but in studies conducted at low temperatures, the inability of the resin to fully benefit from the replacement capacity occurs.

After processing with appropriate parameters in the column containing raw must resins, the said pH values were made suitable, the pH values increased from 3-4 to 5-7.

The must, whose pH values are made suitable, should also reach clarity values in the appropriate color scale as another important feature in pekmez production. To carry out this process, the invention proposes ultrafiltration of the must whose pH values have been optimized. In the system called ultrafiltration, it is ensured that the must is fed with predetermined parameters and gets a clear color. The bore diameters of the filters in the ultrafiltration system are preferably at most 100 microns. The flow rate of the must transferred to the ultrafiltration system is in the range of 50 to 150 L/min. Preferably, this value is in the range of 75 to 125 L/min. Most preferably, the column flow rate of the must is 100 L/min.

The temperature of the must in the ultrafiltration system is in the range of 40 to 75°C. The preferred temperature is in the range of 50 to 70°C. The most preferred temperature is 65°C.

The ultrafiltration process of the must is carried out for a period of 0.01 to 0.05 min/L. Thanks to this process, it is ensured that the must passing through the diameter values determined as liquid is free from dirt, sediment or solid particles that cannot pass through the holes with the said diameter values.

The must, which has appropriate pH values through resins, is clarified through the ultrafiltration system.

The innovative aspect of the invention relates to the process steps that are generally known as acid removal in the art and are applied to ensure that the must obtained during the obtaining of pekmez from the fruits is at the appropriate pH values and color scale, in order to provide all the aforementioned properties by eliminating the process step of using pekmez soil, the raw must is

• first transferred to the columns containing anion and cation resins to bring them to the appropriate pH values and brought to the appropriate pH values as a result of contacting them with the resins;

• as a next process step, it is filtered in the ultrafiltration system and cleaned from sediment, dirt or similar solid particles and obtained in a clean and appropriate color scale.

In this aspect, the invention proposes to integrate the embodiments comprising these two processing steps into modern or conventional pekmez production methods.

Other process steps may vary and do not determine the scope of protection of the invention. For example, separation processes may be applied to the raw must before contact with the resin of the invention and subsequent ultrafiltration processes are applied.

Table 1 Analysis Results of Musts and Pekmez obtained by applying the production methods of the invention

The scope of the protection of the invention is set forth in the annexed claims and certainly cannot be limited to exemplary explanations in this detailed description. It is evident that one skilled in the technic can make similar embodiments in the light of the explanations above without departing from the main theme of the invention.