Abstract

The quality in the small producers’ hot pepper industry is affected by microbial and thermal processing which reduces the physio-chemical qualities of the final product particularly colour retention and to a lesser extent pungency. A series of studies explored the causes and evaluated some protocols to reduce microbial infection and the loss of pigment using varying sealant caps of vegetable oil and sodium chloride, in addition to preserving agents (calcium chloride, ascorbic acid, sodium benzoate, sodium chloride, and calcium citrate). The result confirmed that red pepper mash in 100g CaCl₂ (calcium chloride) submerged under vegetable oil sealant cap retained “L”, ‘a’, ‘b’ colour coordinates as the fresh peppers beyond 100 days with no loss of colour, pungency and flavour.

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