CHARACTERIZATION OF COLOMBIAN QUESILLO CHEESE BY SPECTROCOLORIMETRY CARACTERIZACIóN DE QUESILLO COLOMBIANO POR ESPECTROCOLORIMETRíA

Rationale: The colour of food is one of the major attributes which affect a consumer's perception of its quality, and it is also a powerful tool for quality control and marketing. The Quesillo cheese is a typical Colombian cheese. The observed colour in Quesillo cheese is a composite of many contributing factors. Objectives: The objective of the current work was to characterize the colour of Quesillo cheese using parameters L*, a* and b* of the CIE (Commission Internationale d'Eclairage) system by spectrocolorimetry. Methods: The collection of data with colorimeters was used for the instrumental characterization of colour in Quesillo cheese. Colour parameters L*, a* and b* were measured in triplicate using CIE-LAB space for fourteen commercial Quesillo cheese and seven manufactured cheeses. Using the mean values of colour in the analysed cheeses, parameters of chroma metric (C*), hue (H*), colour differences (ΔE), whiteness index (WI) and yellowness indix (YI) were determined. Results: The general mean values obtained were, L*= 78.13, a*= -0.96, b* = 22.95, C*= 22.97 and H*= 92.38°. These can be estimated as the reference values for Quesillo cheese, which could be used in quality control in the manufacturing process. Different factors are discussed that can change or influence the colour in the final product. Conclusions: The colour variations of this type of cheese are principally due to the initial composition of milk, composition of acid whey and manufacturing technology. Antecedentes: El color de los alimentos es uno de los mayores atributos que afecta la percepción de la calidad por parte de los consumidores y también es una potente herramienta para el control de calidad y mercadeo. El quesillo es un queso típico colombiano. El color que se observa en el quesillo es una combinación de muchos factores. Objetivos: El objetivo del presente trabajo fue caracterizar el color del quesillo utilizando los parámetros L*, a* y b* del sistema CIE (Comisión Internationale d'Eclairage) mediante espectrocolorimetría. Métodos: Los datos del color del quesillo fueron obtenidos con un colorímetro. Se determinó los parámetros de color L*, a*, b* por triplicado, utilizando el espacio CIE-LAB, para catorce quesillos comerciales y siete quesillos fabricados para este estudio. Utilizando los valores medios del color de los quesos analizados se determinó los parámetros de croma métrico (C*), tonalidad (H*), diferencia de color (ΔE), índice de blancura (WI) e índice de amarillo (YI). Resultados: Los valores medios generales obtenidos fueron: L*= 78,13, a*= -0,96, b*= 22,9