Vol. 10, Issue 4 (2021)

Author(s):
Soumya, SB Swami, AA Sawant and YP Khandetod

Abstract:
Fruits are the nature’s gift to mankind, they are not only delicious and refreshing, but also nutritionally rich and supplementing the daily diet of the people. Western Ghats, one among eight “hottest hot-spots” of biodiversity in world harbor many wild, unexploited and minor fruits which are edible and unfamiliar to large proportion of the global population. Some of these fruit crops available in western Ghat are Underutilized edible fruits are important source of food and income for rural communities. Underutilized fruits are therapeutic in nature and used to treat wide array of diseases including chronic diseases. In the last three decades, increased urbanization and deforestation for agricultural land use has led to destruction of valuable plant species including fruit yielding plants. As a result, substantial decrease in the consumption and utilization of underutilized edible fruits has been noticed. The present article describes 45 fruits that are edible and prominent in the Western Ghats region of Southern India. Encapsulation of fruits preserve the organoleptic profile of the product until use and this can ensure the high quality and commercial value of the product. In this review article, several encapsulation techniques that are used commercially or are being applied in the food industry are discussed. This includes spray drying, spray cooling, spray chilling, fluid bed, extrusion, co-crystallization, co-acervation, molecular inclusions and liposome.