INFLUENCE OF ROASTING AND EXTRACTION SOLVENT ON THE CONTENT OF BIOACTIVE COMPOUNDS IN COCOA BEANS FROM DIFFERENT REGIONS

The cocoa bean contains a variety of nutritional compounds; however, the composition of these compounds can vary depending on the cocoa bean variety and the region of cultivation. This variability is influenced by factors such as soil quality, climate, and local vegetation. Furthermore, the processing of the beans can also affect the content of bioactive compounds. This study evaluated the effect of the roasting process (135 °C for 35 minutes) and the use of two different extracting solvents on the content of total phenolics, total flavonoids and antioxidant capacity (AC) (ABTS, DPPH and FRAP) in blends of fermented and dried almonds from Bahia and Linhares-ES. The experiment was arranged in a 2x2x2 factorial design, considering types of almond (raw and roasted), two extraction solvents (ethanol and acetone) and region (BA and ES), with three replicates. The extracts were obtained separately using ultrasound at a frequency of 25 kHz for 1 hour and the solvents at a concentration of 70% and in a 1:5 m/v ratio. The data was submitted to analysis of variance (p<0.05) using the R software. There was a significant effect of the solvent type on the extraction, particularly in the case of the phenolic content and antioxidant activity (ABTS and DPPH) of the raw ES kernels, with the highest values observed when acetone was utilized. Roasting influenced the flavonoid content of almonds from both states, regardless of the extracting solvent. The average flavonoid content for roasted and raw almonds was 8.80 and 4.97 (mg quercetin/100 g), respectively. The raw ES kernels extracted with acetone showed the highest phenolic content. These results confirm the significant impact of the roasting process on the phenolic and flavonoid content of cocoa beans and emphasize the importance of selecting the appropriate solvent for extracting bioactive compounds.