Sulphur sulphured apricots

Prepare a 400-ml beaker of known mass with 190 ml of distilled water and 10 ml of 10% NaOH. Add six freshly sulphured apricot halves to the jar ensuring they are covered by the liquid, weigh the jar to determine total mass of apricot halves and record mass. 

Some dried fruits undergo a rapid Maillard reaction leading to excessively dark products and this is prevented at present only by the use of sulphur dioxide. The minimisation of the amount of this preservative used is therefore an aim in itself. Research into the packaging variables showed that oxidation is the major loss mechanism for SO2 in high-moisture dried apricots (Davis et aL, 1973). This effect was divided into headspace and permeation components with SO2 permeation as an additional effect. The results shown in Table 5.1 provide strong support for the study of oxygen absorbers (Davis et aL, 1975). 

Sulphur dioxide has been used in the preservation of food products for many centuries (Barnett 1985). It is routinely used for drying apricots because it is inexpensive and effective. Sulphur in the form of free sulphur dioxide is mostly responsible for the preservative action in fruit. There are four main reasons for adding sulphur to preserve fruit ... 

Sulphur dioxide is an effective inhibitor of the non-enzymatic browning that occurs during storage of dried apricots. 

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