Impact of selected combinations of non-thermal processing technologies on the quality of an apple and cranberry juice blend

A blend of apple and cranberry juice was processed by a combination of a light-based technology (ultraviolet light (UV) (5.3 J/cm2) or high intensity light pulses (HILP) (3.3 J/cm2) in combination with pulsed electric fields (PEF) (34 kV/cm, 18 Hz, 93 μs) or manothermosonication (MTS) (5 bar, 43 °C, 750 W, 20 kHz). Selected physical and chemical attributes were evaluated pre- and post-processing, and the sensory attributes of non-thermally treated samples were compared to conventional pasteurisation (26 s, 72 °C). No significant changes were found in non-enzymatic browning, total phenolics and antioxidant activity of the juices. UV + PEF and HILP + PEF treatments did not affect the colour of the product and HILP + PEF processing retained more monomeric anthocyanins than any other combined treatment. Sensory analysis showed that UV + PEF and HILP + PEF combinations did not impact on odour and flavour of the juice, while combinations that included MTS adversely affected those attributes.