AbstractsBiology & Animal Science

THE INCORPORATION OF CHIA (SALVIA HISPANICA LAMIACEAE) SEEDS INTO BAKED FOOD PRODUCTS Chia is an herbaceous summer annual which is botanically known as Salvia hispanica Lamiaceae. The seed of this annual is harvested in the fall and has been consumed in Southern Mexico and Central America for generations. Once a staple food of ancient Mesoamerican civilizations, chia has currently emerged as a high source of polyunsaturated fatty acids. The oil of the chia seed has an omega- 3 fatty acid content of up to 68% versus the 57% found in flax seed. The fatty acid contained in chia, ?-linolenic acid (ALA), is metabolized in the body to produce eicosapentanoic and docosahexanoic acids, respectively, and has been found to reduce the risks of coronary heart disease in humans. The objectives of this study were 1) To demonstrate similar consumer acceptance between control products and those incorporated with chia seeds, 2) To investigate which form of chia seed withstands processing and baking best, defined as retaining the highest amount of the chia seed?s omega-3 character. Consumer acceptance data was obtained through the use of hedonic testing at UF/IFAS FSHN taste panel. On separate occasions consumers were asked to rate and rank a cookie or muffin sample, one control and two treated samples (25% and 40% ground chia muffin; 15%ground/15% whole seed and 5% ground/10%whole chia cookie) . Panelist used a nine-point hedonic scale to rate the following attributes: overall acceptance, texture, flavor, and appearance. The hedonic scale was anchored with 1=?dislike extremely? and 9=?like extremely?. The nine-point Food Action rating scale (FACT) was used to determine the consumption attitudes of the panelist. The anchors for the FACT scale were 1=?I would eat this only if forced? and 9=?I would eat this at every opportunity?. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to analyze panelist data, with means separation using Tukey?s HSD test. There was no significant (p < 0.05) difference between the control and the 25% chia muffin in overall acceptability. The same result was found for the cookie control and the 5% ground/10%whole chia cookie sample. Subsequent fatty acid analysis was performed on the muffin and cookie samples, but including the chia in whole, ground, and combination forms at the aforementioned chia levels. It was found that the highest content of ?-linolenic acid was obtained in both ground seed cookie and muffin samples. The muffin and cookie samples were also subjected to water activity, L*a*b* color, and textural analysis, to measure the chia product physical properties versus those of the control samples. Significant differences between the muffin treatments and the control muffin where found for the appearance attribute, L and b color-values, hardness, springiness, and cohesiveness textural attributes. The control cookie and the treatment cookies had significant differences for all attributes. It was found that the ground muffin and ground cookie treatments retained the most omega-3 character of the tested…