Effect of Small-Scale Box-Fermentation on Catechin and Epicatechin Content of Lampung Cocoa Beans Varieties

Cocoa is one of the food commodities that is favoured by its high in polyphenols. The polyphenol and flavonoid in cocoa beans can prevent arteriosclerosis, diabetes and their related risk factors. This research aimed to analyze the total polyphenolic contents (TPC) and flavonoid contents (TFC) of three cocoa bean varieties, namely LAM, TSH, and SUL1 collected from Lampung, Indonesia. The study also aimed to understand the effect of adding starter culture on TPC and TFC contents during cocoa beans fermentation. The TPC and TFC were extracted using ethanol from ground-dried beans and  measured three times using a spectrophotometric method based on the Folin-Ciocalteu method at 760 nm and aluminium reagents at 510 nm. LAM variety contained the highest TPC and TFC among other samples at 62.8 mg GAE/g and 21.9 mg QE/g, respectively. The TPC and TFC decreased during both fermentation treatments with starter culture and non-starter culture. The TPC of cocoa bean with starter culture and with non-starter culture decreased to 58% and 59% after fermentation, respectively. The TFC of cocoa bean with starter culture and with non-starter culture decreased after five days of fermentation, up to 58% and 75%, respectively. Interestingly, the TPC and TFC in fermented cocoa beans with starter culture were higher than those with non-starter culture. Therefore, it is concluded that three days of fermentation with starter culture can produce fermented cocoa beans with the preferred flavour/quality and maintain the TPC and TFC. However, the polyphenols and flavonoids content were reduced during the fermentation process.