Suneeta Singh - School of Agricultural Sciences,SGRRU, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India

Purpose: Wild apricot fruit is a rich source of carbohydrates, minerals and vitamins. Its shelf life is very short due to its perishability characteristics. High perishable nature, high acidity and low sugar content of wild apricot fruits are the major limitations for their utilization as fresh fruits. Research method: In this research, Wild apricot fruits were osmotically dehydrated and packed in different packaging materials viz. polyethylene, aluminium laminated and shrink packages were than stored under ambient conditions for six months and analysed for quality and sensory parameters at two months intervals. Osmotic dehydration is a technique where moisture is partially removed and the sweetness is increased by dipping the fruits in concentrated sugar solution, followed by final drying in hot air. Potassium metabisulphite is added in sugar solution as preservative and to improve colour of the final product. After draining the syrup, the fruits are dried in a mechanical dehydrator to a constant weight. Main findings: Results showed that aluminium laminated packaging material proved to be best among the all packaging materials in maintaining superior quality up to six months of storage as indicated by higher mean titratable acidity (5.78%), reducing sugars (10.11%), total sugars (37.71%), ascorbic acid (4.77 mg/100g) and lower moisture content (11.14%). All the sensory parameters including colour, taste, texture, flavour and overall acceptability declined significantly during storage period of six months. Limitations: There were no limitations to report. Originality/Value: It was found that the most suitable packaging material was aluminium laminated whereas the greatest change in sensory parameters was observed in polyethylene packaging.

osmotically dehydrated, packaging material, sensory quality, wild apricot