Comparative Analysis of Different Drying Methods on Strawberry Aroma Compounds via Multi-Criteria Decision-Making Techniques

Food and food safety, as one of the basic issues of human life, has made it necessary to store foods for a long time with the increasing population. One of the oldest and most common methods of extending the shelf life of food products is the drying process. The drying process contributes to the higher quality of foods in terms of physical, chemical, and microbial properties by ensuring that beneficial contents such as vitamins, minerals, and aroma compounds are better preserved. The aroma values of foods, which consist of taste and smell components, gain importance. In foods, the taste is determined by permanent components, while smell is determined by volatile components. The loss of volatile aroma compounds in the strawberry drying process negatively affects product quality. Small changes in aroma compounds can lead to significant differences in product taste. Therefore, strawberry aroma is a critical factor for consumer appeal and commercial success. In this study, the effects of drying methods on the aroma compounds of strawberry fruit were compared with Multi Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) techniques. In this study, PSI-based MCDM techniques were used to make the most appropriate choice among strawberry drying methods. The values of 23 distinct aroma compounds obtained with different drying methods applied to strawberry fruit were analyzed with 7 different MCDM techniques. The calculations gave similar results and these results were combined with the Borda rule. Accordingly, the drying methods with the highest scores were determined as freeze drying.