Quality Stability of Red Ginseng Stored for Long Periods

장기저장 홍삼의 품질안정성

Samples of red ginseng, which had been manufactured and packaged by the Korean Monopoly Corporation, were stored at ambient temperatures and humidities ($12{\sim}28^{\circ}$ and $55{\sim}68$ percent) for one to nine years to examine their overall quality stability. The proximate compositions, contents of 50% ethanol and water extracts of the samples and the TLC and HPLC patterns of ginsenosides in the samples remained almost unchanged in all cases. The lipids and fatty acids in the samples, which are otherwise susceptible to oxidation, were stable judged on the basis of the changes of the TLC and GLC patterns of the lipids and fatty acids. It was also found that polyunsaturated fatty acids such as linoleic(C18:2) and linolenic and(C18:3) present in the samples had been very stable during the long storage periods. It, therefore, seems that the autoxidations of the lipid and fatty acids of red ginseng were prevented by antioxidative compounds which will be progressively formed in red ginseng through non-enzymatic browning reactions during manufacturing process and long-term storage.