Abstract
Abstract
In this work, a novel coating strategy able to prolonge the shelf-life of fresh-cut kiwi is proposed and the effectiveness of the procedure was evaluated over a period of 15 days in order to propose innovative minimally processed fruits as ready-to-eat. Chitosan and carboxymethyl cellulose were compared as coating material while a number of pretreatments were tested in order to assess the most performing strategy leading to the most stable product. The complete characterization of the Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) was achieved by Solide Phase Micro Extraction associated to gaschromatography and mass spectrometry (SPME-GC/MS) and correlated to the weight losses occurring with the increase of aging. The obtained results suggested that the involvement of carboxymethyl cellulose and ascorbic acid on pretreated fresh-cut kiwi, permitted to extend the shelf-life of the fruit until 15 days during storage at 4°C.