Pectinase was immobilized on a sodium alginate support using glutaraldehyde and retained 66% activity. The optimal pH for activity shifted from 3.0 to 3.5 after immobilization; however, the optimum temperature remained unchanged at 40 degrees C. The immobilized enzyme also had a higher thermal stability and reusability than the free enzyme, and retained 80% of initial activity after 11 batch reactions.