Improved starch recovery from potatoes by enzymes and reduced water holding of the residual fibres

During the industrial extraction of starch from potatoes (Seresta), some starch remains within undisrupted potato cells in the fibrous side-stream. The aim of this study was to investigate if enzymatic degradation of cell wall polysaccharides (CWPs) can enhance starch recovery and lower the water holding capacity (WHC) of the “fibre” fraction. The use of a pectinase-rich preparation recovered 58% of the starch present in the “fibre” fraction. Also, the “fibre” fraction retained only 40% of the water present in the non-enzyme treated “fibre”. This was caused by the degradation of pectins, in particular arabinogalactan side chains calculated as the sum of galactosyl and arabinosyl residues.