Date production
in the world is only confined to a small number of countries,
most of them being the Arab countries. However, the date industry
in the Arab world is not yet fully developed and concerted
efforts are still needed to fully utilize the tremendous
potential of date substances as ingredients in processed foods
for export and the local market. Date pectin, dietary fibre and
syrup are some of the date substances which can find a plethora
of applications as a thickener or gelling agent in processed
foods, i.e., confectionery products, jams, table jellies, soft
cheeses, yoghurts, etc. But date products such as these should be
developed on a sound technological basis which requires adequate
characterisation of the chemical composition and textural
properties of dates. The College of Agriculture, SQU, has
implemented a thorough study on the structure-function
relationships of date ingredients that yielded, for the fist
time, the so-called 'state diagram' of the fruit. The article
elaborates on the study and the benefits it could bring to the
dates industry and the market for
�date-product
