Determination of significant parameters and optimization production of virgin coconut oil using Neurospora sitophila, Lactobacillus Plantarum, and papain

Abstract

Virgin coconut oil (VCO) is a processed coconut product that contains high lauric acid which proved to have a health beneficial effect. Fermentation is one of the means to produce VCO. Factors that affect fermentation can be optimized to increase VCO recovery. The objective of the present study was to determine factors that significantly affecting VCO recovery using Plackett-Burman design (PBD), optimization of a fermentation process using Response Surface Methodology-Central Composite Design (RSM-CCD), and determine characteristics of a product. The experiment was performed by growing Neurospora sitophila and Lactobacillus plantarum, isolation, and activity determination of papain from papaya sap. Nine factors were screened using PBD and the three most significant factors were further optimized using RSM-CCD. The optimum condition was applied to produce VCO and the product was characterized for its physicochemical properties and fatty acid content. The results indicate that papain activity, incubation temperature, and pH were the most significant factors that affect VCO recovery. Further investigation using RSM-CCD indicates that optimum condition for VCO production was 1042.4 U, 46.4°C, and 5.07 for papain activity, incubation temperature, and pH, respectively. The recovery of VCO was 45.06 ± 0.42% and the physicochemical properties of VCO comply to APCC quality standard of coconut oil requirement with 56.7% lauryl acid content.