Analysis, Identification, and Quantification of Anthocyanins in Fruit Juices

Anthocyanins are naturally present in a wide range of plant foods, and are usually associated with the orange, pink, red, violet, and blue colors of fruits, such as berries, plums, cherries, pomegranates, citrus fruits, among others. Juices produced from fruits, especially berries, such as black currants, elderberries, chokeberries, or sour cherries, are a source of vitamins and other compounds, such as anthocyanins. High- or ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography techniques coupled with diode array detection or mass spectrometry detection, are by far the most widely used techniques for the qualitative and quantitative analysis of anthocyanins in fruit juices. Anthocyanin content in fruit juices can be used as quality control parameters to check authenticity. Significant differences can be found for anthocyanin content in the same type of juice, but the profile of anthocyanins should be similar.