During the extraction of juice from galgal fruits (Citrus pseudolimon Tan.), peel, which accounts for about 25-35% of the weight of the fruit, is thrown away and causes an ecological problem when dumped around the processing plants. A process has been standardized for maximum recovery of pectin from these peels by employing various extractants and varying extractant: peel ratios, extractions times, number of extractions and particle sizes of the peel, etc. Here, 0.1 N HCl was the best extractant, with a peel to acid ratio of 1:10 for an extraction time of 60 min. Peel in powder form and two extractions helped to maximise recovery of pectin. Alcohol precipitation was better than aluminium-chloride precipitation and there was not much change in the quality parameters during storage of the dry, powdered pectin. (C) 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd.