Flash fruit sugar exclusion

Abstract

There is provided a process for deacidifying and / or extracting sugars from a juice. The juice is deacidified on a weak anion exchange resin to obtain a deacidified juice having a pH increased by at least 0.2. The deacidified juice is eluted on a strong cation-exchange resin to extract from 30 to 50 % of total sugars from the juice at a temperature of from 5 to 8 °C. In the present disclosure the strong cation-exchange resin is a Na+ form resin.

Description

FLASH FRUIT SUGAR EXCLUSIONCROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

[0001] The present application is claiming priority from U.S. Provisional Application No. 63 / 570984 filed March 28, 2024, the content of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] This disclosure relates to juice products with reduced acidity and reduced partial or total sugar content, and a process for providing same.BACKGROUND OF THE ART

[0003] The conception of juices such as orange juice and apple juice are widespread and popular. A concern with the consumption of these juices is their acidity linked to the terroir, the climate, the origin, the harvest timing, which can put individual with sensitive stomach in discomfort. A second concern is the sugar content for individuals that are on a diet and / or trying to reduce their daily sugar intake. Almost apple or orange juices contains a high quantity of sugar with significant proportion of fructose.

[0004] It has been known to add buffers and certain chemicals or enzymes to increase the pH of orange juices. However those are undesirable extrinsic agents. The assertive and desire of consumers to no longer see chemical agents and artificial support in the processing of fruits and fruit juices have initiated reflection and technical work in order to find natural and physical process.

[0005] It has also been documented that a low pH orange juice does not favour the growth of certain pathogenic microorganisms such as Clostridium botulinum. Since these microorganisms are more likely to grow at a pH above 4.6, low acid juices may require a more aggressive heat treatment to prevent microbial growth. However such treatment may result in spoilage of certain sensitive compounds or the loss of aromas.

[0006] It is therefore desirable to reduce acidity (or increase pH) of orange juices, without additives and in a controlled manner in order to avoid the requirement of aggressive heat treatments.

[0007] Vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid, is found in significant amount in orange juice, and is a vitamin found in various foods or dietary supplements. It has been used to prevent and treat scurvy and is an essential nutrient involved in the repair of tissue, certain enzymatic processes and is required for the functioning of several enzymes.

[0008] Ascorbic acid is a vinylogous acid and forms the ascorbate anion when deprotonated on one of the ring hydroxyls. Ascorbic acid readily forms its sodium, potassium, and calcium salts and are commonly used as antioxidant. It is therefore desirable to maintain ascorbic acid in orange juices.

[0009] Sucrose, glucose, and fructose are carbohydrates (or sugars) also found in natural state in orange juice and apple juice. Sugar plays an important technical role as it contributes to the sweetness of a product and plays other roles such as flavour enhancement. However, there has been a great amount of pressure on the drinks industry to reduce their sugar content. Health related studies have shown a relationship between the intake of sweetened drinks and increased body weight in children and adults as a result of imbalanced energy intake. It has been discussed that drinking sweetened drinks for an extended period of time not only affects the body weight but also causes high levels of triglycerides in blood. The corn syrup HFCS (High Fructose Corn Syrup) is the most difficult to hydrolyse and thus it attaches to the liver generating type 2 diabetes.

[0010] In North America, a cut-off was defined for “sugared products” as being 15 g of sugar for 250 mL of a given drink. Accordingly, it would be desirable to reduce the sugar content to below that amount (which is equivalent to 6 % or 60 g / L).

[0011] In order to reduce the sugar content, certain approaches have been diluting the concentration of sugar with fruit water like coconuts water or maple water. In addition, it is known that present approaches alter flavors and taste and further alter native nutrients composition such as of beta carotene and vitamin C. Another option is incorporating artificial sweeteners in place of natural sugars. However, an issue with these is the risk of altering the flavour and taste of the juice.

[0012] The sugar reduction in orange juice was also demonstrated by elution with a weak anion exchange resin (see W02022049490 for example). However, further improvements are desired, particularly in the elution and process time, as well as improvements in the reduction of sugar content to arrive at less than 6 % of total sugars.

[0013] Moreover, modifications to the process in order to extract the sugars from other juices such as apple juice is also desired.SUMMARY

[0014] In a first aspect, there is provided a process for deacidifying and / or extracting sugars from a juice, while maintaining original nutrients comprising: deacidifying the juice on a weak anion exchange resin to obtain a deacidified juice having a pH increased by at least 0.2; and eluting the deacidified juice on a strong cation-exchange resin to extract from 30 to 50 % of total sugars from the juice at a temperature of from 5 to 8 °C; wherein the strong cation-exchange resin is a Na+form resin.

[0015] In some embodiments, the juice is from a coffee infusion or from a citrus fruit. In an embodiment, the citrus fruit is orange, blood orange, lemon, grapefruit, tangerine, clementine, kumquat, calamansi, black grape, white grape, pitaya, soursop, mango, guava, pomegranate, persimmon, lichi, mangoustan, papaya, maracuja, annona, sapotille, apple, or a combination thereof. In a particular embodiment, the juice is from orange juice or apple juice. In such embodiments, the process further comprises before eluting the deacidified juice, pre-treating the juice to remove a portion of the pulp, for example about 2% to 50 % of the pulp can be removed. Optionally, the pre-treatment comprises clarifying the juice. The pre-treatment may comprise centrifugation and / or filtration.

[0016] In some embodiments, the step of eluting on the strong cation exchange resin is performed in less than 1 h and achieves a reduction of at least 2 brix.

[0017] In some embodiments, the step of eluting on the strong cation exchange resin is performed in less than 1 h and achieves a reduction of at least 2 wt. % in total sugar content.

[0018] In some embodiments, the temperature is from 5.5 to 7.5 °C.

[0019] In some embodiments, the temperature is from 6 to 7 °C.

[0020] In some embodiments, the juice is loaded on the weak anion exchange resin ranging from the 75% to 125% of the calculated loading capacity of said resin.

[0021] In some embodiments, the juice is loaded on the strong cation-exchange resin ranging from the 75% to 125% of the calculated loading capacity of said resin.

[0022] In some embodiments, the weak anion exchange resin is made of acrylic or styrene.

[0023] In some embodiments, the weak anion exchange resin is made of a polystyrene matrix with a sulphonate (SO3_) functional group.

[0024] In some embodiments, the strong cation-exchange resin is a copolymer of styrene with 5-15 wt. % of divinyl benzene (DVB) with sulphonic acid exchange groups.

[0025] In some embodiments, the deacidified juice has a pH of less than 4.6.

[0026] In some embodiments, the deacidified juice has pH of from 3.5 to 4.5.

[0027] In some embodiments, the process further comprises concentrating the juice. In such embodiments, the step of concentrating may be a reverse osmosis or vacuum evaporation.

[0028] Many further features and combinations thereof concerning the present improvements will appear to those skilled in the art following a reading of the instant disclosure.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0029] It is provided a process for extracting sugars from a juice, comprising: deacidifying the juice on a weak anion exchange resin to obtain a deacidified juice having a pH increased by at least 0.2; and eluting the deacidified juice on a strong cation-exchange resin to extract from 30 to 50 % of total sugars from the juice at a temperature of from 5 to 8 °C; wherein the strong cationexchange resin is a Na+form resin.

[0030] The present flash process provides an optimization of the two successive and rapid phases of deacidification / desugaring which are articulated in a progressive continuity although rapid and effective in a very short time.

[0031] “BV” is the acronym for “bed volume”, i.e. , the volume of resin in the column. Also, in the technical field of circulating fluids in columns filled with resins, the flow rate of the fluid is commonly expressed as BV / hour. This has the advantage of indicating the flow rate in a normalized manner, i.e., irrespective of the volume of the column.

[0032] As used herein the pH of a juice at the exit of a column (pHe) in a deacidification process is intended to refer to the pH of a deacidified juice read after being eluted on a weak anion exchange resin but before a container comprising cumulated / combined deacidified juice.

[0033] A pH of a deacidified juice designated pHd refers to pH of cumulated / combined deacidified juice in accordance with the process described herein. pHd is generally preferably obtained from substantially homogenized (e.g. by any way of shaking or mixing) cumulated / combined deacidified juice.

[0034] During the deacidification process as provided herein, the circulation flow rate of the juice in the column containing an anion exchange resin can vary while remaining comprised between 5 BV / hour and 450 BV / hour, preferably 5 BV / hour and 250 BV / hour, or more preferably 5 BV / hour and 150 BV / hour.

[0035] In one embodiment, the volume loading (in BV) of the juice, e.g. orange juice, relative to the volume of resin can be adapted by the person of ordinary skill. The exchange capacity of the weak anion exchange resin being fixed, and defined by the number of active sites available, for a lower pH variation requirement, and at a given target pH, the working capacity expressed in BV increases. For example, at a given exchange capacity of approximately 1.4 equivalents per litre of resin, a BV of orange juice at an initial pH of about 4.3-4.4 may be about double when requesting a decrease of 1 pH unit compared to 0.5 pH units, (e.g. go from about 25 BV to about 50 BV).

[0036] In one embodiment, a loading of juice on the resin (in BV ) is preferably ranging from the 75% to 125% of the calculated loading capacity or preferably 75% to 100% of the calculated maximum loading capacity.

[0037] The juice contemplated in the present disclosure includes juices from citrus fruits such as oranges, blood oranges, lemons, grapefruits, tangerines, clementines, kumquat, calamansi, black grapes, white grapes, pitaya, soursop, mango, guava, pomegranate, persimmon, lichi, mangoustan, papaya, maracuja, annona, sapotille and apple. Also encompassed as juice is a coffee infusion from ground coffee.

[0038] During the method described herein, an anion exchange resin is used to capture acids in order to adjust the acidity with extreme precision and thus deacidify the juice. More specifically, an exchange occurs in the column of an anion on an adsorbent (namely the resin, which is a polymer) against another anion.

[0039] The resin for use in the deacidification of juice is a weak anion exchange resin. For example, the weak anion exchange resins are ternary amines that are neutral at a pH greaterthan 10 and ionized at a pH lower than 10. Consequently, it is understood that a weak exchange resin refers to a resin whose cation function is dissociated based on the pH of the solution.

[0040] Weak anion exchange resins have the advantage of being very specific to weak acids and multivalent acids. Yet as explained above, the juice to be deacidified can comprises citric having three pKas (i.e., the acidity constant) of about pKa1 : 2.9, pKa2: 4.3-4.4, and pKa3: 5.2 at 25 °C and ascorbic acid having a pKa of about 4.1-4.2.

[0041] As encompassed herein, “weak acid” refers to an acid that is not completely dissociated in water. An acid is weaker when its pKa is higher.

[0042] Preferably, the anion exchange resin is an exchange resin of the acrylic or styrene type. Advantageously, it is an anion exchange resin of the acrylic type. The acrylic-type anion exchange resin preferably has a capacity between 1 .6-3.2. The resin also has an initial exchange speed equal to or greater than +0.10 unit of pH / minute observed after 5 minutes of contact of the juice to be deacidified with the resin in a volume ratio of 5:1 (juice: resin). The particle size of the resin varies between 300 and 600 pM. One example of a weak anion exchange resin of the acrylic type is the CR5550 model marketed by the company DOW CHEMICAL under the trade name AMBERLITE™.

[0043] In one embodiment of the method, the pH of the deacidified juice at the exit of the column (pHe) does not exceed pH 5 for any substantial period of time, for example no more than one pH reading over consecutive pH readings at regular intervals of 5 minutes. Preferably, the pHd value of the deacidified juice is comprised between about 4 and less than about 5, preferably less than about 4.6 or from about 4.2 to about 4.6.

[0044] Regarding orange juice, the selective capture of a portion of citric acid while preserving ascorbic acid during the deacidification process according to the present process is particularly advantageous and fast (flash process). Indeed, it is necessary to remove some of the citric acid to deacidify the orange juice and make it more readily acceptable to persons with sensitive stomachs without dilutions and / or additions of other sugars or buffers, but it is desirable to maintain a sufficient amount of citric acid and as much as possible of the other components, such as ascorbic acid, that also have beneficial health and / or flavour properties for the juice. In some embodiments, in light of the pKa values of the citric and ascorbic acids, the pH of the deacidified orange juice at the exit of the column (pHe), if one wishes to selectively capture a portion of the citric acid, may about pKa1 citric acid < pHe < pKa2 citric acid.

[0045] In addition, the deacidification process herein allows for maintaining the pH of the juice (e.g. orange or apple juice) below a pH efficient to prevent growth of microorganisms, such as below about 4.6.

[0046] The deacidification process as provided herein does not require partial deactivation of the reactivity of the anion exchange resin using an acid (e.g., using a solution comprising citric acid, malic acid, ascorbic acid or a combination of the latter).

[0047] In one embodiment, the process is comprising a step for pre-treatment of the juice to be deacidified. This pre-treatment step may comprise clarifying the juice using any existing technique fully within the reach of one skilled in the art. This is particularly useful for orange juice, due to the presence of pulp. Examples of these clarification techniques include centrifugation and filtration (in particular membrane, diatom or plate filtration). For example, the clarification is advantageously done until obtaining a juice having a turbidity below 500 NTU (Nephelometric Turbidity Unit), preferably below 100, still more preferably below 25 NTU. This pre-treatment step has the advantage of preventing clogging of the column. The pulp is optionally reinjected in the orange juice after processing.

[0048] A step for regeneration of the anion exchange resin can be carried out in order to be able to perform, with this same resin, another deacidification of a juice.

[0049] In one embodiment, the deacidification device comprises a plurality of columns, for example preferably between 2 and 10, still more preferably between 3 and 6. The implementation of a plurality of columns is known by those skilled in the art. In one embodiment, said juice is circulated partially in a loop, such that after leaving the column whereby a first part of the deacidified juice rejoins the container configured to contain the juice to be deacidified, and a second part of the deacidified juice joins the container for receiving deacidified juice. The implementation of partial circulation in a loop is known by those skilled in the art.

[0050] In preferred embodiments, the deacidified juice of the present disclosure, does not contain added sugars, masking agents, such as a base or a chelating agent, or buffer. Preferably, the pH of the deacidified juice is comprised between about 3.5 and less than about 4.6, preferably less than about 4.6 or from about 3.7 to about 4.6.

[0051] At the end of the deacidification stage, the process may further comprise a step of concentrating the deacidified orange juice using one or more techniques such as reverse osmosisor evaporation which is within the reach of one skilled in the art. The deacidified orange juice may therefore be concentrated or not prior to performing a sugar-reducing process. For example, deacidified orange juice may have a concentration index comprised between about 5 and about 65 degrees Brix, preferably between about 35 and about 50 Brix or around 50 Brix.

[0052] Furthermore, co-products and sugar residues are recuperated during the recovery process and during column drainage. These sweetening orange extracts, or sweetening substances derived from the fruit, are of great interest to manufacturers. Once concentrated to 70° Brix, they can be used in small quantities as flavor enhancers and fruit sugars in the formulations of any food product.

[0053] To perform the sugar extraction, the present process provides a resin that is a strong acid cation resin. The resins are composed of a polystyrene matrix with a sulphonate (SO3_) functional group. The cation of the strong acid cation-exchange resin is Na+as opposed to H+or other cations. The strong cationic Na+resin can be used without buffers and without an alcohol based regenerative solvent. These resins are specific for the absorption of small sugars such as glucose, fructose and sucrose. In one example, the strong cation-exchange resin is a DYNASPHER™ Na+form resin. In some embodiments, the strong cation-exchange resin is a gel strong acid cation-exchange resin supplied in sodium form. In some embodiments, the gel is a copolymer of styrene with 5-15 wt. % of divinyl benzene (DVB) with sulphuric acid exchange groups.

[0054] The resins of the present disclosure particle sizes between 300 and 600 pM.

[0055] In one embodiment, the strong acid cation resin has a capacity ranging from about 1 .4 to 1.8 equivalents per litres.

[0056] The strong cationic exchange resin is preferably conditioned prior to the sugar reduction process. The conditioning can be done using a citric acid / citrate-containing aqueous solution at / or between pHi and pHd, wherein pHi is the pH of the orange juice to be deacidified and pHd is the pH of deacidified orange juice, the conditioning being before the sugar reduction process. For example, the resin can be conditioned using a conditioning volume of an orange juice, or a deacidified orange juice, or buffered citric acid solution, wherein the juice or solution is either at pH between about 3 to about 4.6, preferably a deacidified orange juice at the pHd: pH i + (0.1-1)] < pHd < 5, preferably between about 4.3 and 4.6. The resin is preferably conditioned using a buffered citric acid solution, preferably at pHd as defined herein, between about 4.0 and4.6. The resin is preferably conditioned using from about 1 to 3 BV of the above-conditioning solution. The resin is also preferably washed out with water after the conditioning.

[0057] Following conditioning of the strong cationic exchange resin, a volume of juice (preferably deacidified in accordance to the process described herein) is eluted on the resin. Preferably, a volume loading of juice is from about 1% to about 10%, more preferably about 5% of the volume of the resin.

[0058] The process provides for selectively recovering a first fraction of the sugar-reduced juice, comprising about 50% to about 70 %, preferably 60 to 70 % by weight of the total sugar amount of the juice such as recovering xBV of said eluted juice wherein x is ranging from 0.1 to 0.8, to provide a sugar-reduced juice.

[0059] The process further provides for additionally recovering a second fructose-enriched fraction from eluting the deacidified juice.

[0060] Within the step of eluting a volume of deacidified juice to be sugar-reduced, the step is comprising eluting said volume of deacidified juice on the resin followed eluting with water, preferably deionized water, until the recovered first fraction is comprising about 30% to about 80 % by weight of the total sugar amount of the deacidified juice. In some embodiments, the total sugar content remaining in the juice is from 4 to less than 6 wt. %, from 4.5 to 5.9 wt. % or from 5 to 5.9 wt. %. A minimal content of sugars is still desired to provide a desirable taste and a nutritional value.

[0061] Preferably the elution of juice is on a column comprising the strong cation-exchange resin, the elution is in a top to bottom direction. The elution rate can preferably be from about 1 to about 10 BV / h, or from about 2 to about 5 BV / h, or about 4 to about 5 BV / h.

[0062] Preferably the elution of juice is on a column comprising the strong cation-exchange resin, whereby the juice is cooled at a desired temperature (from 5 to 8 °C, from 5.5 to 7.5 °C, from 6 to 7 °C) before the elution step and / or the column comprising the strong cation exchange is thermostated (e.g. by means of a jacketed column) to maintain the aforementioned temperatures.

[0063] It was surprisingly found that cooling the juice (e.g. orange juice or apple juice) particularly in the temperature range of from 6 to 7 °C, in combination with the Na+strong cation-exchange resin leads to a reduced elution time and improved performance of sugar exclusion as presented in the examples below.

[0064] In some embodiments, the step of sugar extraction of the present process can be considered a flash sugar extraction. Indeed, in preferred embodiments, the elution in the strong cation exchange resin lasts less than 1 h, less than 55 mins, or less than 50 mins and achieves a reduction of at least 2, at least 2.1 , at least 2.2, at least 2.3, at least 2.4, or at least 2.5 brix. In still some embodiments, the elution in the strong cation exchange resin lasts less than 1 h, less than 55 mins, or less than 50 mins and achieves a reduction in total sugar content of at least 2.5 wt. %, at least 2.6 wt. %, at least 2.7 wt. %, at least 2.8 wt. %, at least 2.9 wt. % or at least 3 wt. %. When performing the aforementioned elution, the pump can be considered to operate at 40- 70%, preferably around 50% at the start possibly decreasing to around 40% during the elution run. The amplitude of rectification in sugars content obtained by the flash sugar extraction process described herein is up to 60% with desugared products with a good organoleptic quality.

[0065] The deacidification step is also considered a flash deacidification as pH is increased considerably in less than on minute.EXAMPLE 1 : Room temperature sugar exclusion for apple juice

[0066] The process was tested on two different juices, orange juice and apple juice. The objective is to reduce acidity (i.e. increase the pH) and also reduce the sugar content (by at least 40-50 %). When removing acidity and the sugars it is important to not degrade, hydrolyze or remove the nutritive molecules in the juice (e.g. vitamin C for orange juice).

[0067] Initial solution of concentrated apple juice having a brix of 69.1 was diluted to obtain an apple juice having a Brix solution of 10.8. The initial temperature of the apple juice was 24.2 °C, and the pH was 3.33. A total mass of 12.4 g of apple juice was selected to be deacidified in a weak anion exchange resin column (DYNASFER / TYCaSPHER - CGRCa Calcium).Table 1 . Apple juice deacidification

[0068] The assay was run for a total of 2 h and 40 mins, until the resins were saturated. Only a small deacidification was observed increasing the pH by only 0.12 even when reducing the flow rate of the pump. The Brix, however, substantially remained unchanged during the deacidification process which indicates that no clogging occurred in the column.

[0069] The obtained slightly deacidified apple juice was then subjected to a sugar extraction process. The resin used in the column for the sugar extraction was DYNASPHER™ CGR-Na a strong cation-exchange resin with Na+(as opposed to other H+resins). Before going into the column, the deacidified apple juice had a Brix of 10.3, a pH of 3.45 and a temperature of 24 °C.Table 2: Sugar extraction of deacidified apple juice at 24 °C

[0070] The test was run until the maximum capacity of desugaring of the resin was reached. As presented in Table 2, the Brix of the apple juice was reduced by 1.8 and the pH was increased by 0.4.EXAMPLE 2: Cooled sugar exclusion for apple juice

[0071] A concentrated apple juice having a Brix of 69.1 was diluted to a Brix of 11.9. The deacidification of the apple juice was performed on 10.5 g of the diluted apple juice, which had a temperature of 24 °C and a pH of 3.29. The same weak anion exchange resin as Example 1 was used.Table 3. Apple juice deacidification

[0072] The deacidification results were similar to the deacidification of Example 1. The Brix was only slightly reduced from 11 .9 to 11 .4 and the pH was slightly increased from 3.29 to 3.5. The deacidified apple juice was then placed in a fridge for three hours to reduce its temperature to 6 - 7 °C for the sugar exclusion.

[0073] Accordingly, the deacidified juice that was subjected to sugar removal in DYNASPHER™ CGR-Na strong cation exchange column had a temperature of 6 - 7 °C, a pH of 3.42 and a Brix of 11 .4.Table 4. Sugar extraction of deacidified apple juice at 6 - 7 °C

[0074] The assay time to remove the sugars from deacidified apple juice was significantly reduced to 35 mins (Table 4 compared to Table 2) and more sugars were removed in less time. In Example 1 , 1.8 Brix was eliminated in 1 h 15 mins whereas 3.4 Brix was eliminated in 35 mins in Example 2. Therefore, it was surprisingly found that the temperature had a significant effect on the speed of the sugar extraction.EXAMPLE 3: Cooled sugar exclusion for orange juice

[0075] An orange juice having a Brix of 10.4 and containing pulp were pretreated with centrifugation to reduce approximately by half the pulp in the orange juice (estimated 3 % pulp remaining). An amount of 9.1 g of the orange juice was subjected to deacidification. The sample had an initial temperature of 11 .4 °C, a pH of 3.45 and a Brix of 10.4 as previously indicated. The same weak anion exchange resin as Example 1 was used.Table 5. Deacidification of orange juice

[0076] Compared to the deacidification of apple juice, the deacidification of orange juice was much faster and the pH was increased by a larger margin. It therefore seems that the same resin has a different performance on different juices. The pH of the column reaches 6 within 20 mins. It should also be noted that the Brix was reduced when deacidifying the orange juice which is in contrast with the apple juice deacidification. The column was clogged with the pulp of the orange juice which explains the reduction in Brix. This can also be explained by the significant reduction in acids. As shown in Table 5, the pH was increased by 0.53.

[0077] The deacidified orange juice was then subjected to a deacidification with a DYNASPHER™ CGR-Na strong cation exchange column. The deacidified orange juice sample was cooled to 3.5 °C in a fridge for three hours, the initial pH was 3.8 and the Brix was 8.Table 6. Sugar extraction of deacidified orange juice at 3.5 °C

[0078] The sugar exclusion column was run until the resin saturated. As shown in Table 6, the Brix was reduced by 1 and the pH was increased by 0.1 .EXAMPLE 4: Cooled sugar exclusion for orange juice at the improved temperature range

[0079] An orange juice having a Brix of 10.6 and containing pulp was pretreated with centrifugation to reduce approximately by half the pulp in the orange juice (estimated 3 % pulp remaining). An amount of 10.2 g of the orange juice was subjected to deacidification. The sample had an initial temperature of 11 .4 °C, a pH of 3.48 and a Brix of 10.6 as previously indicated. The same weak anion exchange resin as Example 3 was used.Table 7. Deacidification of orange juice

[0080] Compared to Example 3, the pump power was increased to reduce the residence time in the column. The residence time is a factor in the deacidification speed, as can be seen from Table 7 (compared to Table 5). It should also be noted that the same resin as Example 3 was used for Example 4 and was not regenerated before the run. This is also a factor explaining the performance observed in Table 7.

[0081] The deacidified orange juice was cooled in the fridge until a temperature of 6.9 °C for the sugar removal. A DYNASPHER™ CGR-Na strong cation exchange column was used. The deacidified orange juice had a pH of 3.6 and a Brix of 9.6.Table 8. Sugar extraction of deacidified orange juice at 6.9 °C

[0082] It was surprisingly found that a temperature of 6 - 7 °C is preferable and leads to a much faster assay time whether the temperature is reduced (see comparison to Example 3) or whether there is no cooling (see comparison between Examples 1 and 2). Indeed, the Brix was reduced by 1.6 in 45 mins whereas in Example 3 the Brix was only reduced by 1 in 1 h.EXAMPLE 5: Analysis of the sugar content

[0083] The following samples were analyzed for their specific molecular contents.Table 9: Samples analyzed

[0084] To analyze the contents of the above samples, a high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was performed (Uptisphere™ HDO 125*2.1 mm 3 pm, debit of 0.25 mL / min, first solvent for 7 mins was water with 0.1 % phosphoric acid then solvent was acetonitrile until reaching 20 mins, the temperature was 40 °C and the volume injected was 5 pL). Calibrationwas performed with four standard acids, namely malic, ascorbic, tartaric, and citric. For each of the 10 samples A-J, 1 gram was subjected to lyophilization to eliminate water. The mass loss of the lyophilization was used the determine the water content in the sample.

[0085] A salinization was performed on the samples as follows. Hexamethyldisilizane and then trimethylchlorosilane were added in anhydrous pyridine powder. After 12 h of reaction, the supernatant was injected into the gas chromatography and detection flame (the apparatus being lined with linear paraffins C15-C20). The sugar content was measured by using the Kovats retention index. The quantitative analysis was performed by adding sorbitol before salinization while taking into account the coefficients of response for the main sugars (fructose, glucose, galactose and saccharose), as well as gluconic acid. The results were expressed as percentages as the water content was previously determined from the lyophilization.Table 10: Acid content for samples A-JTable 11 : Water content for samples A-ETable 12: Sugar content of Samples A-JTable 13: Sugar content for sample B compared to sample A (reduction of sugars by 38.86%)Table 14: Sugar content for sample J compared to sample G (reduction of sugars by 38.60%)

[0086] As can be seen from the above tables, the sugar content was reduced by around 30- 40% for both the orange juice and the apple juice. This desirable sugar reduction was achieved with the improved process as presented in the previous examples, one major advantage of the present process is the reduced time it takes to perform the sugar exclusion.EXAMPLE 6: Analysis of multiple resins in column during flash sugar exclusion and / or deacidification

[0087] In order to verify compatibility of resins during flash sugar extraction and / or deacidification, columns containing 11 of resins where prepared. Juice were passed at a rate between 2 to 250L / h. This testing allows to perform saturation curves according to the resin, checkthe behavior of the resins according to the products, control regeneration and flushing and determine the BVs required to adjust the pH according to the product.

[0088] The following combination of resins were tested:-50% LEWATIT™ S5221 / 50% DYNASPHER ™ WAC6703-F-LEWATIT™ S5221 alone-50% DYNASPHER ™ CGR-Na / 50% DYNASPHER ™ CGR-Ca mixture-PAD950C alone- DYNASPHER ™ WAC6703-F

[0089] Deacidification of apple juice, orange juice or cranberry juice and sugar exclusion from orange juice were tested. The tests demonstrated that DYNASPHER WAC6703-F resin is very effective for deacidification. Resin regeneration during desugaring was done with water. It takes about 4 hours to desugar apple juice and barely 1 hour for regeneration of the resins. Flash is therefore involved in water regeneration and the push to free the sugar-loaded water column. For deacidification, the processing time is in seconds (the pH by 0.2-0.3 in 20 seconds). However, regeneration takes 4 hours. The system can operates continuously.

[0090] While the present disclosure has been described in connection with specific embodiments thereof, it will be understood that it is capable of further modifications and this application is intended to cover any variations, uses, or adaptations and including such departures from the present disclosure as come within known or customary practice within the art and as may be applied to the essential features hereinbefore set forth, and as follows in the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:1 . A process for deacidifying and / or extracting sugars from a juice, comprising: deacidifying the juice on a weak anion exchange resin to obtain a deacidified juice having a pH increased by at least 0.2; and eluting the deacidified juice on a strong cation-exchange resin to extract from 30 to 50 % of total sugars from the juice at a temperature of from 5 to 8 °C; wherein the strong cation-exchange resin is a Na+form resin.

2. The process of claim 1 , wherein the juice is from a coffee infusion or from a citrus fruit.

3. The process of claim 2, wherein the citrus fruit is orange, blood orange, lemon, grapefruit, tangerine, clementine, kumquat, calamansi, black grape, white grape, pitaya, soursop, mango, guava, pomegranate, persimmon, lichi, mangoustan, papaya, maracuja, annona, sapotille, apple, or a combination thereof.

4. The process of any one of claims 1-3, wherein the juice is orange juice or apple juice.

5. The process of any one of claims 1-4, further comprising before eluting the deacidified juice, pre-treating the juice to remove a portion of the pulp.

6. The process of any one of claims 1-5, wherein the step of eluting on the strong cation exchange resin is performed in less than 1 h and achieves a reduction of at least 2 brix.

7. The process of any one of claims 1-6, wherein the step of eluting on the strong cation exchange resin is performed in less than 1 h and achieves a reduction of at least 2 wt. % in total sugar content.

8. The process of any one of claims 1-7, wherein the temperature is from 5.5 to 7.5 °C.

9. The process of any one of claims 1-8, wherein the temperature is from 6 to 7 °C.

10. The process of any one of claims 1-9, wherein the juice is loaded on the weak anion exchange resin ranging from the 75% to 125% of the calculated loading capacity of said resin.11 . The process of any one of claims 1-10, wherein the juice is loaded on the strong cationexchange resin ranging from the 75% to 125% of the calculated loading capacity of said resin.

12. The process of any one of claims 1-11 , wherein the weak anion exchange resin is made of acrylic or styrene.

13. The process of any one of claims 1-12, wherein the weak anion exchange resin is made of a polystyrene matrix with a sulphonate (SO3_) functional group.

14. The process of any one of claims 1-13, wherein the strong cation-exchange resin is a copolymer of styrene with 5-15 wt. % of divinyl benzene (DVB) with sulphonic acid exchange groups.

15. The process of any one of claims 1-14, wherein the deacidified juice has a pH of less than 4.6.

16. The process of any one of claims 1-15, wherein the deacidified juice has pH of from 3.5 to 4.5.

17. The process of claim 5, wherein the pre-treatment comprises of clarifying the juice.

18. The process of claim 17, wherein the pre-treatment comprises centrifugation and / or filtration.

19. The process of claim 5, wherein about 50 % of the pulp is removed.

20. The process of any one of claims 1-19, further comprising concentrating the juice.

21. The process of claim 20, wherein the step of concentrating is a reverse osmosis or evaporation.