DOI: https://doi.org/10.55373/mjchem.v25i5.230

Keywords: Coconut water; fermentation; organic acids; antibacterial

Abstract

This study aims to develop a fermented drink with the main ingredient of coconut water which is processed with the addition of mass variants of dragon fruit peel and lemon peel to increase antibacterial activity. Coconut water is one part found inside mature coconuts that contains bioactive compounds that have the potential as antibacterial such as catechin compounds. Catechin compounds are major components is reported to have antimicrobial activities. In this case, the fermentation process using lactic acid bacteria is known to affect the bio-access ability to degrade catechins into catechol and gallic acid which is supported by the addition of dragon fruit peel and lemon peel to increase antibacterial activity. The stages of this research include, the first stage is determining the optimum conditions which include determining the fermentation time (0, 12, 24, 36, 48, and 60 hours) and the composition of variations in the ratio of the addition of dragon fruit peels and lemon peels (3:0, 1:2 and 2:1) based on total acid produced from the fermentation process. Then, continued on the second stage is the identification of the content of organic acid compounds formed using the HPLC method and the antibacterial activity test using the "The disc diffusion" method. Based on the results showed the optimization of fermentation time that produces the optimum total acid is 48 hours. Product characteristics test showed that the addition of dragon fruit peels and lemon peels can increase to produce metabolic (organic acid components) which has a positive correlation antibacterial activity. The antibacterial activity from fermented coconut water using lactic acid bacteria started with 48 hours incubation period against Escherichia coli was higher (inhibitory zones of 4.6 mm) than Staphylococcus aureus (inhibitory zones of 3.24 mm). This study confirmed that the addition of dragon fruit peel and lemon peel can increase antibacterial activity during coconut water fermentation using lactic acid bacteria.