The problem of providing the population with quality, environmentally friendly food is of great medical and socio-economic importance. To stabilize the organoleptic characteristics of the product quality: preserving the brightness of color, aroma and taste, avoiding darkening and roƫng of the fruit, during drying, they are pre-treated with sulfur dioxide (SO2 ). In Ukraine, SO2 is included in the list of permitted dietary supplements and is considered to be safe for health, while adhering to maximum permissible standards of use. However, the results of research by world scientists indicate that the consumption of products containing sulfur dioxide is harmful to human health. The purpose of these studies is to determine the dependence of organoleptic quality indicators of dried fruit samples on the safety index of sulfur dioxide content; to determine the effect of exposure of dried apricot samples in water (8–13 °C) on the content of sulfur dioxide. The studies were conducted on the basis of the laboratory of organoleptic and physicochemical studies of the chemical and toxicological research department of the State Research Institute for Laboratory Diagnostics and Veterinary and Sanitary Expertice (DNILDVSE). To control the quality of dried plums, dates and apricots, organoleptic studies were performed according to the requirements of DSTU 8471: 2015. To study the safety of these products, the total sulfur dioxide content was determined by acidimetric and nephelometric methods according to DSTU ISO 5522: 2004. The results of organoleptic studies indicate that each of the dried fruit samples tested met the organoleptic quality standards of DSTU 8471: 2015. The results of the physical and chemical studies indicate the safety of the data of the samples of dried fruits by the content of sulfur dioxide, as the obtained values did not exceed the maximum permissible norms for consumption: the average value of the total content of sulfur dioxide in the samples of dried plums – 30.8 ± 4.8 mg/kg, dried dates – 22.4 ± 2 .8 mg/kg, dried apricots – 61.8 ± 13.1 mg/kg. Analyzing the results of organoleptic and p h ysicochemical studies, we have not established a direct dependence of organoleptic quality indicators of dried fruits on the safety index of sulfur dioxide content. Experimental studies were also conducted to determine the effect of the exposure of the dried apricot samples (average total sulfur dioxide content – 61.8 ± 13.1 mg/kg) in water (8–13 °C) on the sulfur dioxide content. The results of determining the total content of sulfur dioxide in the tested samples of dried apricots indicate a significant (P < 0.01) decrease in this indicator compared with the values of primary studies of SO2 content in these samples: No. 1 – 11 ± 0.2 mg/kg, No. 2 – 18 ± 0.2 mg/kg, No. 3 – 23 ± 0.1 mg/kg, No. 4 – 16 ± 0.2 mg/kg, No. 5 – 5 ± 0.1 mg/kg (decrease by 82 %, 80, 2, 71, 69.2 and 81.4 % respectively).
dried fruits, organoleptic studies, sulfur dioxide content