Essential Oil of Fennel Seeds as Natural Preservative in Butter and its Shelf Life Assessment

Abstract

The efficacy of essential oil of fennel seeds was examined in terms of its antioxidant and antimicrobial activity. The antioxidant activity of essential oil was determined by DPPH method along with the comparative analysis with ascorbic acid as a standard. Chemical composition of fennel seed oil was determined by GC/MS analysis. The essential oil of fennel seed was incorporated in butter in varying concentrations as natural preservative to enhance antibacterial and antioxidant activities. Total bacterial count, zone of inhibition, water activity of butter samples along with titrimetric analysis viz. peroxide value, acid value and free fatty acids were determined at regular intervals in order to have all round assessment on the storage stability of butter.