Determination of coffee fruit antioxidants cultivated in Saudi Arabia under different drying conditions

Coffee is one of the most widely used beverages in the world. Postharvest techniques mainly affect the nutritional value and bioactive components of the food samples. In this study, the effect of drying methods and extraction solvents was assessed on different parts of coffee fruit. The total polyphenol content, total flavonoid content, and the antioxidant activity in terms of DPPH scavenging and reducing power of the samples were measured. Results revealed that oven drying of the coffee fruit parts led to significantly higher total polyphenol content, total flavonoid content, and antioxidant activities compared to the shade drying at room temperature. Ethyl acetate extracts of all samples exhibited significantly lower total polyphenol content, total flavonoid content, and antioxidant activities than the methanolic extracts. Coffee beans were more potent in terms of phenolic content and antioxidant activity as compared to the coffee pulp and parchment. These results suggest that oven drying method can be adopted for processing of coffee fruit.