Expert: J. Peter Clark - 2/21/2008

Question
Hi,

i am in the line of manufacturing a new chilli sauce and coconut chutney in jars which should be refrigerated.

This is the first time in doing so. So i really need some help.
I wish to know what sorts of preservatives will be needed to improve the shelf life and appearance as they only last a few days.
Also i am working on a indian mouth freshener that will be in bottles. it is a sweet product so what sweeteners should i use and what colours do i need as the product is red.
Thanks

Answer
Your sauces and chutney probably need to be heat treated for at least 30 seconds at over 180 F to give them any shelf life at refrigerated temperatures. Without knowing the ingredients, it is impossible to suggest preservatives that might work, but some that people use are ascorbic acid, propionic acid,benzoic acid,and their salts. These inhibit molds and yeasts.

As to the mouth freshener,you probably want to use a non-caloric sweetener. Candidates are aspartame, sucralose, cyclamate (illegal  in the US but not elsewhere), stevia, and mayb some others. I do not know what dyes to suggest for color - there are only a few approved for foods. Natural reds include carnitine and lycopene.