JPH10324816A - Tomato pigment and its production - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain a tomato pigment containing lycopene as the principal component and having a high purity and an excellent color by adding an organic solvent in an amount to give a specified composition to a retentate obtained by precisely filtering the liquid portion collected from a product of centrifugal treatment of tomatoes and agitating the mixture. SOLUTION: To a product obtained by subjecting tomatoes to treatment such as crushing or frictional crushing or by straining a product of such treatment, two-to five-fold amount by volume of water is optionally added, and the mixture is centrifuged for 30 sec to 10 min at 3,000-10,000 G into a semi-fluid solid portion and a liquid portion. The liquid portion is subjected to precision filtration with a precision filter membrane having a mean pore diameter of 0.01-5 μm, desirably 0.1-0.5 μm under conditions including an operating pressure of 0.1-8.0 kg/cm<2> and a temperature of 10-80 deg.C, and the retentate is collected. To this retentate, an organic solvent (e.g. ethanol or methanol) in an amount to five a concentration of 50-90 w/w %, desirably 75-85 w/w % is added, and the mixture is agitated for 30 min to 2 hr to purify it.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a method for producing tomato pigments, and more particularly to a lycopene-based high-purity color tone useful as a coloring agent for foods, quasi-drugs, cosmetics, etc. The present invention relates to a method for industrially and easily producing a good tomato pigment.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, tomatoes are crushed, degraded by a plant tissue-disintegrating enzyme, and then subjected to permeation through an ultrafiltration membrane having a molecular weight cutoff of about 120,000 to 200,000 to concentrate tomatoes that are richer in red than non-permeated portions. A method for obtaining a liquid (see Japanese Patent Publication No. 59-35880) is known. In addition, after adding alkali to the tomato crushed product to separate the carotenoid complex from living tissue, and removing unnecessary epidermis, seeds, fibers, etc. from the separated solution,
An acid is added to separate and precipitate the carotenoid pigment, the precipitate is adjusted to a pH of about neutral to slightly alkaline, and then concentrated.The acid is added to the acid to make it acidic. (Japanese Patent Publication No. 55-13)
No. 11) is known.

[0003] However, the above-mentioned tomato concentrate contains abundant insoluble solids such as pulp, polysaccharides and proteins and soluble components such as sugars, acids and aroma components, and has a rich flavor unique to tomatoes. It has drawbacks such as the inability to use this tomato concentrate as a pigment in a wide range and the low lycopene content. In addition, the latter carotenoid for food coloring has a feature of high lycopene content.However, in the production, use of alkali and acid is inevitable, the process is very complicated, and the product has a salty taste. Therefore, it has drawbacks such as being restricted when used as a pigment in foods, cosmetics, and the like.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION As a method for producing a tomato pigment, the present inventors previously collected a liquid portion obtained by centrifuging a processed tomato product, and microfiltrating the liquid portion to separate a lycopene pigment. Completed the concentration method (Japanese Patent Application No. 07-352)
No. 325). The tomato pigment produced by this method is characterized by maintaining the water-dispersibility of the lycopene-containing particles of the tomato, but on the other hand, the color is somewhat dark, so it is not always satisfactory, and the color is improved. As a result, the field of use is expected to expand, and a simple and economical method for purifying lycopene is desired. The present invention provides a natural colorant for food, a lipopine-based high-purity tomato pigment having a high purity, which can be widely used as a natural pigment in cosmetics such as food, cosmetics such as lipstick, or quasi-drugs, etc. Has been made with the aim of efficiently obtaining.

[0005]

Means for Solving the Problems The inventors of the present invention have conducted intensive studies to solve the above-mentioned problems, and as a result, have found that non-permeation obtained by microfiltration according to the method of Japanese Patent Application No. 07-352325 is used. Tomato pigments obtained by adding an organic solvent to the product to a specific concentration, mixing, stirring, purifying and separating, removes taste components and coexisting pigments derived from tomato raw materials as organic solvent-soluble components As a result, they have found that they have high purity, exhibit bright red color, and have improved color tone, and have completed the present invention based on this finding. That is, the present invention is to centrifuge the processed tomato to collect the liquid portion,
This is subjected to microfiltration to collect a non-permeate, and an organic solvent is added to the non-permeate so as to have a concentration of 50 to 90 W / W%, mixed and stirred to purify the tomato pigment. A method for producing a tomato pigment, a natural colorant for food containing the tomato pigment obtained by the production method as an active ingredient, and a natural pigment for cosmetics containing the tomato pigment obtained by the production method as an active ingredient It is.

[0006]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail. The terms used in the present invention are defined as follows. Lycopene: Good compound represented by the (Lycopene) by the molecular formula C ₄₀ H ₅₆ tomato dye body, but is not limited to the configuration ratio of the stereoisomers. Lycopene complex: a unit called a dye structure in which lycopene and other biological components are bound or coexist, and is a dye unit composed of a plurality of components mainly composed of a lycopene molecule. Chloroplast: Refers to an intracellular pigment particle containing a lycopene complex. The particles include some carotenoid pigments other than lycopene or chlorophyll. Tomato pigment: A pigment derived from tomato containing lycopene, lycopene complex and chloroplast in any ratio.

First, the processed tomato products used in the present invention include crushed tomato products, crushed processed products, pulp treated products thereof, and processed plant tissue degrading enzymes. Specifically, tomato pulp is crushed and sifted by a conventional method to remove the pericarp, seeds, etc., tomato paste obtained as it is or concentrated, tomato puree obtained by a conventional method, tomato juice, concentrated reduced tomato, etc. Is mentioned. Prior to centrifugation, this processed tomato product is subjected to physical grinding using mechanical shearing force such as a blender-type grinder and / or a plant tissue disintegration enzyme treatment, thereby destroying plant cells, and thereby lycopene. It is preferable because a tomato pigment containing the complex in a high concentration can be easily obtained. The grinding and / or enzymatic treatment can also be performed on a liquid portion obtained by centrifugation. Examples of the plant tissue-disintegrating enzymes include pectylase, pectinase, cellulase, hemicellulase, protease, amylase, lipase and the like. The enzyme treatment is preferably performed with gentle stirring at around the optimum pH and the optimum temperature of the enzyme to be used. For example, when pectylase is used, the pH is 3 to 4 and the temperature is 20 to 55.
It is preferred to perform the process at a temperature of 0 ° C. until the tissue structure is collapsed. The processed tomato product may be used as it is, but preferably after heat treatment to completely inactivate the enzyme remaining there,
Preference is given to centrifugation. If necessary, the processed tomato product may be subjected to coarse filtration using a coarse filter cloth or the like to remove water-insoluble solids floating on the processed tomato product, followed by centrifugation.

Next, the processed tomato product is left as it is.
Alternatively, in the case where the processed tomato paste is a tomato paste, 2 to 5 times by volume of water is appropriately added, uniformly stirred to form an aqueous suspension, and then centrifuged. Such an aqueous suspension is preferable because a lycopene pigment can be obtained at a high recovery rate, and a tasteless and odorless tomato pigment can be obtained by a washing effect by contact with a large amount of water.

[0009] The centrifugation is not particularly limited, and any ordinary centrifugation method can be employed. However, any method can be employed in which the processed tomato product can be separated into a liquid portion and a sediment portion in a short time by solid-liquid separation. For example, a high-speed centrifugation method or the like can be employed. The conditions of the centrifugal force and the time at that time, when the processed tomato product is divided into the liquid portion and the sedimentation portion, any condition that maximizes the recovery amount of the liquid portion is adopted, for example, 3000 to 10,000 G for 30 seconds. For example, 10 minutes to 10 minutes can be adopted. In the present invention, this centrifugation is important, and by this operation, it is very easily separated into a semi-fluid (paste-like) solid content and a liquid portion.
Since the lycopene pigment contained in the processed tomato product is liberated in the liquid portion, if the liquid portion is recovered by centrifugation, the lycopene contained in the raw material can be recovered in good yield.

The liquid portion thus obtained contains a high concentration of lycopene dye, but at the same time, contains insoluble components such as pulp, polysaccharides and proteins, and soluble components such as sugars, acids and aroma components. Ingredients are also contained at high concentrations. In the present invention, this liquid portion is subjected to microfiltration, so that a non-permeable portion containing a desired lycopene dye at a high concentration (hereinafter simply referred to as a non-permeable portion) and a permeated liquid portion containing a contaminant component (hereinafter simply referred to as a permeated portion). Liquid part). Microfiltration (micro) used in the present invention
Filtration (MF) means that suspended particles of about 0.2 to 10 μm contained in the liquid portion are separated and collected using a membrane. Generally, a microfiltration membrane has pores capable of separating suspended particles of about 0.01 to several μm, but in the present invention, it is 0.01 to 5 μm.
Lycopene can be efficiently recovered by using a membrane having an average pore size of μm, more preferably 0.1 to 0.5 μm.

The microfiltration membrane used in the present invention may be of a tubular type, a capillary type, a spiral type or a hollow fiber type. Specific examples of the microfiltration membrane include an organic membrane made of a polysulfone-based, fluorine-based, or polyolefin-based material, and an inorganic membrane made of a ceramic material. Specific examples of the organic film include NTF-5201 (manufactured by Nitto Electric Industries, Ltd.), 5202 (manufactured by the company), and 5200
5 (manufactured by the company), SF-501 (manufactured by Kuraray), PW-3
03 (manufactured by Asahi Kasei Kogyo Co., Ltd.), and a specific example made of an inorganic film includes a ceramic film CEFILT (manufactured by NGK Insulators, Ltd.). The operating pressure of the microfiltration membrane is, for example, a normal operating pressure of 0.1 to 8.0 kg / cm ² and a temperature of 10
~ 80 ° C.

Next, the permeation treatment of the liquid portion by the microfiltration membrane can be performed by selecting an appropriate microfiltration treatment device. For example, in a tubular type ceramic filter, the membrane inlet temperature is 10 to 80 ° C., and the inlet pressure is 3.0 to 3.0.
9.0 kg / cm ² · G, outlet pressure 2.0-8.0 kg
The treatment is preferably performed under conditions such as / cm ² · G. Further, in a filter using a plate type organic membrane, for example, the membrane inlet temperature is 10 to 80 ° C., and the inlet pressure is 2.0 to 8.0 kg.
/ Cm 2 · G, outlet pressure 0.1 to 5.0 kg / cm 2 · G
It is preferable to process under such conditions.

As described above, by a very simple means of centrifuging a processed tomato product to collect a liquid portion, and microfiltration of the liquid portion to collect a non-permeable portion, oxidation, light,
Efficient production of tomato pigment with high heat and storage stability, containing lycopene pigment with an average particle size of 0.2 to 10 μm as pure lycopene in an amount of 300 mg% or more, and having very few impurities (insoluble solids) of 2% by weight or less. You can do it. Most of the lycopene dyes are chloroplasts containing a lycopene complex and retain the characteristics of chloroplasts floating in tomato cells, so that they have very good solubility and suspension in aqueous liquids. Since it shows turbidity, contains no salt, etc., and is almost tasteless and odorless, it can be suitably used as a natural pigment in cosmetics such as natural coloring agents for food and lipstick, or quasi-drugs. When the vertical axis of the coordinates is the heating temperature and the horizontal axis is the heating time (minutes),
The tomato pigment containing the lycopene complex thus obtained was subjected to 90 ° C: 7 minutes, 100 ° C: 3 minutes, 110 ° C:
3 minutes, 115 ° C .: 3 minutes and 118 ° C .: 0 minutes. By performing the heat treatment under the conditions belonging to the upper part of the boundary obtained by connecting the points, the tomato pigment without any heat-resistant bacteria can be obtained. can get.

The non-permeable portion contains other components derived from tomato, such as high molecular components such as pulp and protein, and lycopene pigments with very little impurities such as low molecular components such as sugars, organic acids, and amino acids. Although concentrated, it is not always satisfactory in its color tone. As a means for further reducing such contaminants, a method of adding a large amount of water to the concentrated lycopene dye and performing microfiltration, or a method of adding an appropriate amount of water and performing microfiltration in multiple stages can be adopted. However, although these methods can remove water-soluble contaminants derived from tomato, the fat-soluble component coexisting with lycopene,
For example, other carotenoid components cannot be removed. This lycopene pigment is present as a pigment complex in pigment particles in tomato cells, chloroplast, and coexists with other carotenoids. This chloroplast has a diameter of 0.2 to 10 μm and floats in a suspended state in an aqueous solution. The color tone of the tomato pigment obtained from the non-permeable portion is affected by the composition of coexisting carotenoids in chloroplast. Therefore, it is necessary to remove other carotenoids in order to obtain a bright red color unique to lycopene.

Therefore, in the present invention, the non-permeable portion (hereinafter, referred to as lycopene solution) containing the lycopene complex obtained by the above-mentioned microfiltration contains an organic solvent at a concentration of 50 to 90 W / W% (hereinafter simply referred to as%). The mixture is mixed and stirred, and then deliquored to purify the tomato pigment. The organic solvent may be any one that separates and elutes lycopene and other carotenoid components, and examples thereof include methanol, ethanol, propanol, and acetone. As an organic solvent when the tomato pigment obtained by the present invention is used as a food coloring agent, ethanol is particularly preferably used. It is desirable that the elution conditions are set by setting the optimum conditions according to the properties and physical properties of the target processed material. The final concentration of the organic solvent is 5
By adding so as to be 0 to 90%, preferably 75 to 85%, the pigment particles coagulate and settle. If it is less than 50%, sedimentation of the pigment particles is poor, and a great deal of labor is required for the subsequent recovery. The properties of the sediment containing lycopene that has been purified and coagulated and precipitated by the organic solvent (hereinafter referred to as sediment) greatly affect the efficiency of the subsequent separation of the organic solvent. Therefore, it is desirable that the final concentration of the organic solvent be 50% or more. When the final concentration of the organic solvent is 50% or more, preferably 75 to 85%, the effect of removing beta-carotene and the like is increased, and the color becomes bright red.

The method of mixing the lycopene solution and the organic solvent is not particularly limited, and may be a uniform mixture. For example, a commonly used mechanical stirring method is used. The stirring time at that time may be any time required for the solvent to sufficiently penetrate into the interior of the pigment particles, come into contact with contaminant components other than lycopene and elute, and for example, the mixing and stirring time such as 30 minutes to 2 hours. Adopted. After stirring, the sediment is separated and collected in a batch system,
Any continuous type can be adopted. As the method, for example, any of a stationary type, a pressing type, and a centrifugal type may be used, and the composition of the filter surface to be used may be any of filter paper, filter cloth, and plastic plate. When the sediment is collected and water is added, a lycopene pigment having a bright red color and a good color tone is obtained. As an index for determining the color tone of the collected sediment, for example, a value and a value measured with a color difference meter and a numerical value represented by an a / b value can be used. Is determined to be strong.

The tomato pigment of the present invention thus obtained has a higher lycopene purity and a light red color compared to the above-mentioned tomato pigment not treated with an organic solvent. Alternatively, it can be widely used as a natural pigment for cosmetics such as lipstick and nail polish. In order to use the tomato pigment of the present invention as a coloring agent or pigment, the amount of the tomato pigment may be appropriately selected according to the desired degree of coloring.
It can be used by being added so as to be from mg% to 500 mg%.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described more specifically with reference to examples and experimental examples. In addition, the analysis of lycopene in the examples is described in “Analysis Handbook” edited by the Japan Tomato Products and Condiments Inspection Association, Tomato Products, Sauces and Vinegar (PART1), March 1981, 8-9 According to the method described on page, the sample was washed with methanol and then extracted with benzene. The absorbance of the extract at a wavelength of 480 nm was measured with a spectrophotometer (U-2000, manufactured by Hitachi, Ltd.), and the amount of lycopene was determined by the following equation. Lycopene amount (mg%) = (480 nm absorbance) × 20.
16 ÷ Sample weight (g)

[0019]

EXAMPLES Example 1 (Production of Tomato Pigment from Tomato Paste) Water was added to 230 kg of tomato paste, diluted with water, and Bri was added.
x was adjusted to 7. 1150 kg of this diluent was emulsified with an emulsifier (Milder MDN303V-C manufactured by Ebara Corporation).
Crushed at 1000 rpm using a centrifuge (Separator SB7-06 manufactured by Westphalia)
-076 type) and 6000 r. p. The depulp treatment was performed for 4 minutes at m. The centrifugal supernatant obtained here was collected. The lycopene content in this solution was 10 mg%
Met. The supernatant was supplied to a 0.2 μm-exclusion-diameter microfiltration machine (manufactured by Ceramem, model SA-0200, membrane area 11.5 m ² ) at a temperature of 50 ° C. and a pressure of 4 kg / cm ² for treatment. The permeate was separated, and the lycopene particles were concentrated in the non-permeate. The lycopene concentration of this concentrate was 0.25
%, And the viscosity was 20,000 cp.

Next, a final concentration of 10 mg% of Pectlyase (manufactured by Seishinsha) was added to the non-permeable portion, and the mixture was added at 30 ° C.
After holding for 1 minute to disintegrate the plant tissue and reduce the viscosity, the mixture was heated to 90 ° C. to inactivate the added enzyme. This liquid was filtered again with a 0.2 μm-exclusion-diameter fine filter (NGK-Cefilt, manufactured by NGK Insulators, filtration area 0.35 m ² ).
The treatment was performed at 50 ° C. and an inlet pressure of 2 kg / cm ² to obtain a lycopene solution containing 0.5% lycopene on the retentate side. This lycopene solution was collected, and ethanol for food addition was added thereto at room temperature to a final concentration of 75%, mixed, stirred for 30 minutes, washed with alcohol, and then 5000 g
The precipitate was separated from the ethanol part by centrifugation at 15 minutes at rpm. Activated carbon-treated water was added to the obtained precipitate, and lycopene 0.5 having a bright red color tone
% Of tomato pigment was obtained.

Example 2 (Production of Tomato Pigment from Tomato Fruit) 1,300 kg of tomato fruit was washed according to a conventional method, and then crushed.
After heating to 65 ° C., the juice was squeezed with a finisher equipped with a 0.5 mm screen to obtain 1150 kg of tomato juice. Its Brix was 5, and the lycopene content was 12 mg%. This juice was emulsified using an emulsifier (Ebara Corporation, Milder MDN303V-C type) at 1000 rpm.
The crushing treatment was repeated twice at m.

Subsequently, the centrifugal separator (Separator SB7-06-076 type manufactured by Westphalia) was used for 600 minutes.
0r. p. m, for 4 minutes.
The lycopene content in the centrifuged supernatant collected here was 10%.
mg%. The supernatant was supplied to a 0.2 μm-exclusion-diameter microfiltration machine (NTF-5202, manufactured by Nitto Denko Corporation, membrane area: 12 m ² ), and the temperature was 50 ° C. and the pressure was 4 kg / cm ^2.
To separate the permeated liquid, and to obtain a concentrated liquid containing lycopene, which is a non-permeate, in the liquid retained in the device. The lycopene concentration of this concentrate was 0.25%. Next, pectinase (manufactured by Yakult Honsha) at a final concentration of 10 mg% was added to the concentrated solution, and the mixture was kept at 30 ° C. for 30 minutes to disintegrate the plant tissue to reduce the viscosity, and then heated at 90 ° C. to lose the added enzyme. I was alive. This solution was again filtered with a 0.2 μm exclusion diameter microfilter (NGK-Cefilt, manufactured by NGK Insulators, Ltd .;
In 35m ^2), 50 ℃, treated under the conditions of inlet pressure 2.0 Kg / cm ^2, to obtain a lycopene solution containing 0.5% of lycopene retentate side. This lycopene solution was collected, ethanol for food addition was added and mixed at room temperature to a final concentration of 75%, and the mixture was stirred for 30 minutes and washed with alcohol.
The sediment was separated from the ethanol part under the conditions of centrifugation at 5000 rpm for 15 minutes. Activated carbon-treated water was added to the obtained sediment to give a bright red, good-colored lycopene 0.5
% Of tomato pigment was obtained.

Example 3 (Production of Tomato Pigment from Tomato Paste) 230 kg of tomato paste was diluted by adding water, and Bri
x was adjusted to 7. 1,150 kg of this diluted solution was emulsified with an emulsifying machine (Ebara Seisakusho's Milder MDN303V-C).
Using a centrifuge (Westfalia Separator SB7-06).
-076 type) and 6000 r. p. m, for 4 minutes. The centrifuged supernatant was then passed through a 300 mesh sieve to remove any pulp fragments. The lycopene content in this solution was 10 mg%.

The supernatant was supplied to a 0.2 μm-exclusion-diameter microfiltration machine (SA-020, manufactured by Ceramem, membrane area 11.5 m ² ), and the temperature was 50 ° C. and the pressure was 4 kg / kg.
The solution was treated under the condition of cm ² to separate the permeate, and the concentrated solution containing lycopene was concentrated as a non-permeate in the liquid retained in the device. The lycopene concentration of this concentrate was 0.25%.
This liquid was again subjected to a 0.2 μm-exclusion diameter microfiltration machine (NGK-Cefilt, manufactured by NGK Insulators, 0.35 m ² ).
At 50 ° C. and an inlet pressure of 2.0 kg / cm ² to obtain a lycopene solution containing 1.0% lycopene on the retentate side. This lycopene solution was collected, and ethanol for food addition was added and mixed at room temperature to a final concentration of 75%, and the mixture was stirred for 30 minutes and washed with alcohol. 1
The sediment was separated from the ethanol part by a Buchner filter equipped with 01 filter paper. The sediment collected on the filter paper was collected, and activated carbon-treated water was added to obtain 10 kg of a tomato pigment containing 1.0% lycopene having a bright red color and a good color tone.

Experimental Example 1 (Ethanol Concentration and Tone Pigment Color) Using the lycopene liquid in the non-permeable portion obtained by microfiltration shown in Example 1, the final concentration of ethanol in this lycopene liquid is shown in Table 1. The tomato pigment obtained by the same ethanol washing operation as in Example 1 and the lycopene solution not subjected to the ethanol treatment were adjusted to 50 to 90 W / W% so that the lycopene content was 25 mg%, and the final ethanol concentration and Table 1 shows the results of comparing the color tone relationships.
The color tone was measured using a color difference meter (1001DP manufactured by Nippon Denshoku Co., Ltd.).
A) and b value were measured by the following formula, and a value obtained by dividing the a value by the b value was calculated as a /
It was expressed by b value. It is determined that the larger the value, the more reddish.

[0026]

[Table 1]

As shown in Table 1, the effect of improving the color tone is remarkably observed in the 50% ethanol group. If it is less than 50%, the sedimentation of the pigment particles is poor, and the subsequent recovery requires a great deal of labor. In the 60 to 70% section, the change in the effect (a / b value) due to the increase in the ethanol concentration is small, and when it is 75% or more, the effect is further increased. Therefore, it can be seen from this change in color tone that the final concentration of ethanol is preferably 50% to 90%, particularly preferably 75% or more.

Experimental Example 2 (Effect of removing beta-carotene and the like) Using the lycopene solution in the non-permeable portion obtained by microfiltration shown in Example 1, a solution containing 25 mg of lycopene was prepared, and the final concentration of ethanol was determined as follows. As shown in Table 2, 50% to 90% was added, mixed, stirred and washed with ethanol, and lycopene (mg), beta-carotene (mg) and unidentified substances (OD 354 nm) eluted in the collected ethanol part.
Was measured to examine the relationship between the final concentration of ethanol and the removal effect. Lycopene, beta-carotene, OD 354nm
The unidentified contaminants measured in the above were analyzed and quantified by high performance liquid chromatography.

The high performance liquid chromatography analyzer used was a combination of an L-6200 pump manufactured by Hitachi, Ltd. and a 996 photodiode array detector manufactured by Waters, and the column was MERCK.S manufactured by Merck.
uppersphere100RP-18 (4 μm, 4φ ×
250 mm) at a temperature of 35 ° C. and the mobile phase is methanol: acetonitrile: 2-propanol (54:44:
2), flow rate: 1.0 ml / min. The lycopene and beta-carotene contents were calculated from the peak areas of the respective standard substances. The elution times of lycopene and beta-carotene were 19.7 minutes and 32.6 minutes, respectively. The elution time of the unidentified substance by high performance liquid chromatography is 34 minutes, but the absolute amount cannot be quantified by the standard substance.
l).

[0030]

[Table 2]

As shown in Table 2, when the final concentration of ethanol was made high, beta-carotene was eluted more, but lycopene was also eluted. The elution amount of beta-carotene was 85% at maximum in the 80% ethanol group. %, The elution amount was slightly lower than that. Lycopene, on the other hand, began to elute at 75% or more of ethanol, and at 80% or more, the elution increased as the ethanol concentration increased. The unidentified subcomponent has an absorption characteristic at 354 nm.
The degree of elution was high in the 75-85% ethanol range. These component changes support the color tone changes shown in Table 1.

Therefore, from Experimental Examples 1 and 2,
In order to wash and purify the lycopene dye with ethanol, the final concentration of ethanol is 50 to 90%, more preferably 75 to 90%.
It can be seen that by performing the reaction at 85%, contaminant components are eluted in the recovered ethanol, and the color tone of lycopene is significantly improved. In addition, the tomato pigment obtained by ethanol treatment can be used as a tomato pigment while containing ethanol.If necessary, to remove ethanol, add several times the amount of water to an ethanol-containing lycopene solution, mix, and concentrate lycopene. It is treated with a microfiltration membrane capable of separating particles of about 0.1 to 10 μm of the same type used, and can be eliminated as a mixed solution of ethanol and water.

Example 4 (Example in which tomato pigment of the present invention is used in a beverage) A sports beverage having the composition shown below was added to the tomato pigment of the present invention obtained in Example 1 and subjected to the ethanol-washing treatment of the present invention, or ethanol-washed as a comparative example. The previous lycopene solution was added so that the lycopene content was 5 mg%, thereby preparing 1 kg of each colored sports drink. The colors of the beverages were compared by visual evaluation with six full-time panelists. <Composition of sports drink> Fructose glucose liquid sugar 65 g oligosaccharide 30 g citric acid 2 g sodium chloride 1 g vitamin C 2 g calcium lactate 0.2 g flavor 1 ml As a result, the color tone of the beverage using the tomato pigment of the present invention is clearly bright red. , Indicating that the tomato pigment of the present invention can be effectively used as a coloring agent for beverages.

Example 5 (Example in which the tomato pigment of the present invention is used in a jelly food) The jelly food having the following composition was added to the tomato pigment of the present invention obtained in Example 1 and subjected to the ethanol washing treatment of the present invention, or ethanol as a comparative example. The lycopene solution before washing was washed with a lycopene content of 5
mg jelly and add 1 colored jelly food
Kg was prepared. The color tone of the jelly food was compared by visual evaluation with six full-time panelists. <Composition of jelly food> Fructose glucose liquid sugar 60 g Gelling agent 2 g Citric acid 2 g Vegetable extract 10 g Sodium chloride 3 g Flavor 1 ml It can be recognized significantly, indicating that the tomato pigment of the present invention can be effectively used as a coloring agent for jelly food.

[0035]

The tomato pigment according to the method of the present invention maintains the shape of lycopene grains, that is, the shape of chloroplast, because the chloroplast membrane structure is not destroyed, and lycopene exists in the natural membrane structure. The color tone is still bright red. Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to efficiently produce a tomato pigment having lycopene as a main component and having a high purity and a light red color by a simple means. The tomato pigment obtained by the method of the present invention can be widely used as a natural colorant for food, a natural pigment for cosmetics such as lipstick, and the like, and is extremely useful in industry.

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Katsumi Yuasa 4-13 Nihonbashi Koamicho, Chuo-ku, Tokyo Inside Del Monte Co., Ltd.

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A processed tomato product is centrifuged to collect a liquid portion, which is subjected to microfiltration to collect a non-permeate, and an organic solvent is added to the non-permeate so as to have a concentration of 50 to 90 W / W%. And mixing and stirring to purify the tomato pigment. 2. The method for producing a tomato pigment according to claim 1, wherein the processed tomato product is a crushed tomato product, a crushed processed tomato product, or a flattened product thereof. 3. The microfiltration membrane according to claim 1, wherein
The method for producing a tomato pigment according to claim 1, which is a membrane having an average pore size of 0.5 µm. 4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the organic solvent is ethanol, and the ethanol concentration is 75 to 85 W / W%. 5. The processed tomato product is centrifuged to collect a liquid portion, which is subjected to microfiltration to collect a non-permeate, and an organic solvent is added to the non-permeate so as to have a concentration of 50 to 90 W / W%. A natural colorant for foods, comprising as an active ingredient a tomato pigment obtained by adding, mixing and stirring to purify. 6. The processed tomato product is centrifuged to collect a liquid portion, which is subjected to microfiltration to collect a non-permeate, and an organic solvent is added to the non-permeate so as to have a concentration of 50 to 90 W / W%. A natural pigment for cosmetics containing as an active ingredient a tomato pigment obtained by mixing, stirring, and purifying.