Innovative Coating Technologies to Extend the Shelf Life of Fresh-Cut Fruits by Edible Film Materials

Abstract

In this work, the application of a novel strategy to extend the shelf life of fresh cut fruits isproposed. In particular, edible film coatings from natural resources were used with the aim ofextending the shelf life of fresh cut apples. Chitosan and carboxymethylcellulose were consideredand a promising formulation was developed. The evaluation of the shelf life extension of fruits wasperformed in a multiparametric way over a period of 10 days. The percentage weight losses werecalculated for treated and untreated fruits in order to evaluate the performances of the coatingmaterialto avoid contact with environment. In the meanwhile, gas chromatography coupled to massspectrometry (GC-MS) was considered to determine the volatile compounds producing acharacteristic flavor of apples. Results demonstrated a significant improvement in the physiologicalloss in weight of treated fruits with respect to controls, while the study of the volatile componentindicated the ability of treated fruits to retain its freshness during storage.