Development of soy-fortified biscuits and shelf-life studies

Control and soy biscuits prepared with standardized recipe were subjected to shelf life studies. Biscuits were packed in two different types of packaging materials viz., polypropylene and laminate of cellophane and butter paper and stored under ambient conditions of average temperature, at 29.5°C and RH. 73.5%. During storage, moisture content, peroxide value and free fatty acid contents of biscuits increased whereas hardness, crispness and overall sensory acceptability scores of biscuits decreased gradually. There was a slight non-significant increase in non-enzymatic browning of biscuits. These changes were more pronounced in biscuits packed in laminated packaging than in polyprophylene film irrespective of levels of soy fortification. Thus, polypropylene proved to be a better packaging material for biscuits than the laminated one and biscuits packed in it could be stored for 45 days under ambient conditions whereas. in laminated packaging, the shelf-life of biscuits was 30 days. The keeping quality of biscuits could be increased further by storing them under low relative humidity conditions.