The edible coating is considered as one of the most-effective and safer ways to prolong the shelf-stability of the horticultural crops. Utilization of rice bran wax (RBW) as a coating substrate can be an excellent shelf-life extension strategy by transforming secondary by-product from rice processing into a useful coating substrate. This research was an attempt to use RBW as an edible coating and its effects on the shelflife extension of Marutham CO3 variety tomatoes. Crude RBW refined in laboratoryscale was undergone for free fatty acid profile analysis and found that contains 18 health-beneficial free fatty acids. RBW was made into an emulsion with different concentrations used for coating the tomatoes. Physiological loss weight, lycopene content, TSS, firmness, respiration rate, SEM structure, and thickness of the coatings were analyzed and observed that 10% emulsion coated tomatoes had shown a shelflife of 27 days, compared to 18 days of the control samples. Practical applications The concept of edible coating is one of the current global research trends that involve in the formulation of primary packaging material for food products that can be ingested safely along with the food. It is a cost-effective and sustainable solution to reduce the environmental pollution caused by conventional polymer packaging solutions. Rice bran wax is a secondary by-product separated from the rice bran oil during refining. It has good applicability in the formation of lipid-based edible coatings, after refining and removal of crude resinous matter. It is a hydrophobic substance and avoids moisture loss from the product during storage. Due to its water repellency, it also avoids microbial infestation. It can be beneficially used for horticultural crops, owing to their low shelf life due to high moisture content and metabolic activity. The rice bran wax-based coating can also delay the ripening process by modifying the immediate environment of the product. This coating can be used for high valued horticultural produce that tends to ripen or shrivel sooner. It can also be used as an obstruction against enzymatic browning in cut fruits and vegetables and for minimally processed and packaged foods. Rice bran wax-based edible coating can be used for shelf-life extension of horticultural produce and also for milk (e.g., Cheese) and meat (e.g., Cut meat) products.

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Rice bran tends to become rancid during storage if it is not stabilized. In commercial rice mills, bran is removed in phases using battery of polishers and different fractions of rice bran are produced. The stabilization reduces peroxidase, lipases, lipoxygenase and auto-oxidation enzymatic activities. The bran fractions were stabilized by continuous microwave heating at different treatment combinations (850, 925 and 1000 W; 3, 4.5 and 6 min) and stability of bran fractions were analysed in terms of Free Fatty Acid (FFA), Acid value (AV) and Peroxide value (PV) for 90 days at the interval of 15 days. As power and exposure time increases the FFA, AV and PV are found to be low during storage period. The rancidity level was high in last milling bran fraction and as milling progressed, the rancidity level also increased and it was similar throughout the storage. The bran fractions processed at 925 W to 3 min found to be the suitable condition for stabilization of rice bran milling fractions.