Avocado - Tropical and Subtropical Fruits: Postharvest Physiology, Processing and Packaging - page 429

stored under refrigeration at about 2.8 ◦ -4.4 ◦ C(37 ◦ -40 ◦ F)
for 60 days.
Avocado freeze-drying has been reported to be a good
option to solve the shelf life and transportation problems
of this fruit. Different patents have been recently granted
describing avocado freeze-drying processes. Garcia (2010)
described the process to obtain avocado powder by means
of a process that increases the shelf life, preventing fat ox-
idation and breakdown of compounds that responsible for
avocado's characteristic aroma and flavor, without affecting
the nutritional and other sensorial properties. Freeze-drying
can be done without any additive or preservative, thereby
obtaining a natural product. The process for obtaining avo-
cado powder comprises the following steps: Fruit selection
with optimum maturity

the destoner) and fruit flesh being expelled from the three-
phase decanter. This technology has the constraint of the
disposal of residuals.

Indigenous products
Avocado is a fruit highly appreciated by indigenous peo-
ple in Mexico and in some other tropical and subtropical
countries. In recent years, it has gained popularity in other
countries and has been called the “plant butter” with ex-
traordinary properties such as delicious flavor as well as a
beneficial fatty acid pattern comparable to olive oil. It is
currently used in gastronomy, nutrition, healing, and cos-
metics (Galindo et al., 2007).
Regarding gastronomy, perhaps the most popular way of
preparing avocado is guacamole, a mix of avocado paste
with peppers, onions, garlic, lime, and salt. Traditionally,
this dish was prepared the same day that it was eaten. In-
creasingly, it is possible to find refrigerated or frozen gua-
camole products with an extended shelf life.
Avocado pulp and oil are also used in cosmetics. In an-
cient times, the ground pulp was used directly on the skin,
particularly on the face, giving a smooth appearance. Cur-
rently, a considerable variety of products claim to contain
avocado, such as shampoos, creams, and emulsions. The
particular content of oleic, linoleic, linolenic, and palmitic
acids of the fruit induces beneficial characteristics to skin
and hair.
Avocado leaves from the native Mexican avocado trees
are used both fresh and dry in the indigenous cuisine of the
South Central part of Mexico. In Oaxaca State, leaves are
used as a bed for cooking meats inside a pit oven, as well as
a flavoring for tamal, a traditional food made of corn meal,
meat, and sauces. The leaves of the avocado are charac-
terized by their astringent and carminative properties, and
the indigenous people use these leaves in the treatment of
diarrhea to reduce abdominal bloating. The leaves of the
avocado also have an effect on relieving coughs. Avocado
leaves are considered an important ingredient in ancient
indigenous medicine.

→ Removal of pit and hull →

Milling Precooling prior to dehydration (cooling can be

fast or slow)

→

→ Dehydration using freeze-dryer → Pul-

verization Packing. The precooling process is carried

out with liquid nitrogen or a freezing mixture consisting of
dry ice and ethanol. Though expensive, freeze-drying is the
best option to dry this sensitive and delicate fruit, allow-
ing the avocado to preserve all its sensorial and nutritional
characteristics (Arriola et al., 2006).

→

Juice, concentrate, and juice blends
Due to the high content of oil of avocado products, it is
difficult to extract juice. However, beverages, for exam-
ple, avocado shake, can be prepared from fresh, frozen, or
refrigerated pulp. When mixed with milk, an avocado milk-
shake is obtained, which is a convenient way of consuming
a balanced quantity of the oil of avocado that has many
health benefits (Dorantes- Alvarez et al., 2004).

Avocado oil
Among new avocado products, avocado oils with novel
flavors such as lime, rosemary, garlic, and others are be-
ing produced commercially. Though the oil is rich in oleic
acid, a health-beneficial monounsaturated fatty acid, its ed-
ible uses due to the availability of cheaper vegetable oils
are limited to cosmetic and pharmaceutical applications
(Hoffman et al., 2002). After peeling, extraction of oil can
be done by centrifuging, pressing the fresh pulp, or by
hot water treatment, but the yield is low using these meth-
ods. Solvent extraction can improve oil yield considerably
(Hoffman et al., 2002). Werman and Neeman (2007) stud-
ied the effects of centrifugation rate, pH, salt, and mixing
temperature on the extraction efficiency of avocado oil. The
residual portion is then disposed as an aqueous phase and
two solid phases, the husks (seed and stones expelled from

Standards of quality
Worldwide commercialization and consumption of avoca-
dos is mainly in the fresh form. Standards for fresh avocado
are available on the CODEX (CSA, 1995), which are essen-
tially the same that the standards from Florida in the United
States. It must be emphasized that every avocado product
should comply with all the microbiological criteria estab-
lished in accordance with the Principles of Establishment
and Application of Microbiological Criteria for Foods of