Active Films Based on Starch and Wheat Gluten (Triticum vulgare) for Shelf-Life Extension of Carrots

Abstract

The use of biodegradable biopolymers with the incorporation of active ingredients has been considered as an alternative to extend the useful life of food. Therefore, the objective of this research was to develop active films based on starch and wheat gluten, containing cinnamon and turmeric essential oils by using the solvent casting method. Different film formulations were made from wheat starch, gluten, glycerol, and essential oils of cinnamon and turmeric. The films were characterized according to their morphology, optical, thermal, antioxidant, and barrier properties. Subsequently, the active properties on baby carrots regarding weight loss, appearance, and fungal growth were evaluated. The results indicated that the starch-based films showed a slight decrease in moisture content with the addition of essential oils (up to 13.29%), but at the same time showed a significant reduction in water solubility (up to 28.4%). Gluten-based films did not present significant differences in these parameters, although the solubility in water tended to increase (up to 13.15%) with the addition of essential oils. In general, the films presented good thermal stability and antioxidant capacity, and in the carrot coating test, a decrease in weight loss of up to 44.44% and 43.33% was observed for the coatings based on starch and gluten with the addition of turmeric essential oil, respectively. Finally, films developed with cinnamon and turmeric essential oils are potential candidates for the design of biodegradable active packaging.

A Review on Reinforcements and Additives in Starch-Based Composites for Food Packaging

“…CEO is considered one of the most common EOs in starch matrices for packaging applications because of its great antioxidant properties. In particular, the addition of CEO reduces the moisture content of the films and the water solubility due to its hydrophobic behavior and provides good thermal stability and antioxidant capacity as shown in a recent article where films were obtained via solvent casting, using glycerol as a plasticizer (25% w/w starch) and varying the bioactive compound [282]. In another study, the addition of CEO in a matrix of starch and sugar palm-based cellulose was studied [283], where an increase in tensile strength and tensile modulus was observed due to the group interactions in the films.…”

Application of Pyrolysis for the Evaluation of Organic Compounds in Medical Plastic Waste Generated in the City of Cartagena-Colombia Applying TG-GC/MS

“…Of the production volumes, a significant percentage ends up in various bodies of water and it becomes one of the most critical environmental pollutants on the planet [ 3 , 4 , 5 , 9 , 10 , 11 ]. Currently, one of the most serious types of harm that are caused by plastic is the generation of bioaccumulative microplastics [ 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 ]. In the United States alone, hospitals were reported in 2020 to generate 5.9 million tons of medical waste per year [ 16 ].…”