"Effectiveness of Citric Acid to Reduce Bitter Taste in Branched Chain Amino Acids (BCAA) Drink"

Abstract

PT Pangan Adil Sehat is a beverage manufacturing company based in Indonesia and has started operating since early 2021. During this industrial internship period, the author was placed in the Research and Development (RnD) Division. RnD interns were tasks include product development, quality control, and shelf life testing. Moreover, one product developed during the internship, Branched Chain Amino Acids (BCAA) drink, would later be used in a research to assess the ability of citric acid in reducing bitter taste of BCAA drink was also done. This research was done due to the increase in demand for a functional product which could boost muscle growth. Physical analysis in the form of pH measurement as well as sensorial assessment of the bitterness and sourness were also utilised to determine the effect of citric acid on the sample. 3 different concentrations of citric acid, 0%, 0.05%, and 0.10% (w/w) was used. The result showed that citric acid was able to reduce the bitterness intensity in BCAA drink; the sample with the highest citric acid concentration at 0.10% (w/w) CA had a significantly lower bitterness intensity at 2.93, which was a 55.27% decrease in bitterness intensity when compared to the negative control. The result also showed a strong negative correlation between sourness and bitterness with correlation coefficient of -0.849. This was possible because citric acid was able to lower the activity of the bitter taste receptor. Overall, this internship was a good opportunity to apply food technology knowledge and develop various skills.