Characteristics and Quality of Guava Nectar Enriched with Gum Arabic as a Prebiotic Product

Guava (Psidium guajava L.) contains a high concentration of vitamin C and carotenoids, making it perfect for nectar production. Gum arabic is a natural prebiotic fiber obtained from Acacia plants that is commonly used in meals and beverages. The goal of this study was to determine how adding various concentrations of gum arabic water extract (0, 1.5, 3.0, 4.5, and 6.0%) to guava nectar affects its shelf life, physical and chemical qualities, sensory evaluation, antimicrobial activity, and ability to produce a prebiotic nectar. Guava fruit had considerably more protein, fat, and ash levels than gum arabic (4.02, 3.3, and 2.21, respectively). The sensory evaluation revealed that guava nectar with 4.5% gum arabic water extract (sample 3) had much better sensory qualities than the other samples. The total phenolic and flavonoid content rose dramatically as the concentration of gum arabic increased. Guava nectar with 6.0% gum arabic (sample 4) had the greatest total phenolic and flavonoid content, with 559.10 mg GAE/100g and 82.72 mg QE/100g, respectively, and the antioxidant activity reached 82.72%. Furthermore, the results showed that various samples had substantial antibacterial action against Salmonella typhi, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, and Candida albicans as the gum arabic content increased. Additionally, gum arabic increases the viability of Lactobacillus acidophilus to 13.39 log CFU/ml. Furthermore, applying 1.5, 3.0, 4.5, and 6.0% gum arabic water extract to guava nectar produced a prebiotic nectar with better physicochemical properties and prolong shelf life to six-month. Therefore, the addition of 4.5% gum arabic water extract to guava nectar produces a functional product with potential health benefits, including enhanced antioxidant activity, improved antimicrobial efficacy, and support for probiotic activity.