Cultivar affects the color change kinetics of sugarcane juice
Sugarcane (Saccharum spp.) chemical composition varies considerably according to several factors like climate, maturation stage, culture physiological age, physical, chemical and microbiological soil properties, agricultural practices and cultivar. Freshly produced sugarcane juice, known in Brazil as ‘garapa’ is a popular non-alcoholic beverage and according to Yusof et al. (2000) can be stored at 5 °C for four days. The soluble solids content varies from 15 to 25 oBrix and its pH is between 5 and 6. Cane juice is highly perishable because of the high sugar concentration, the elevated water activity (Aw = 0.99) and the low acidity. The soil and vegetable microorganisms, transferred during harvesting and cutting, are the most relevant, mainly yeasts and filamentous fungi, lactic bacteria and spores. Therefore, shorter processing times in harvesting, decontamination and juice extraction allow for lower effects of microbial activity within the cane stalks and consequently higher quality juices (Dliveira et al., 2007).