Edible Coatings Enriched with Essential Oils and their Compounds for Fresh and Fresh-cut Fruit

Abstract

Fresh fruit and vegetables consumption has increased in the past few years due to the enhanced awareness of consumers for healthy food. However, these products are highly perishable, and losses can be of great significance if postharvest correct management is not provided. Fresh-cut products are of increasing importance, since they are presented to the consumer in a state that allows for direct and immediate consumption. However, those products are even more perishable since cutting can induce a series of senescence associated responses to wounding, and are more susceptible to microbial spoilage. Edible coatings, which intend to reduce ripening processes and protect the fruit from water loss and spoilage may be a good way to enhance the shelf life of these products. More recently, the inclusion of additives into these edible coatings to increase their effectiveness, such as essential oils and their constituents with antimicrobial and antioxidant activities, has been reported and patented.

The use of polysaccharide-based edible coatings enriched with essential oils to improve shelf-life of strawberries

“…Some authors (Ribeiro et al, 2007;Hernández-Muñoz et al, 2008) attributed the beneficial effect of their coatings to the use of calcium on them. The beneficial effect of calcium on firmness retention is widely known (Antunes et al, 2010(Antunes et al, , 2012. In our case, the differences in the coatings cannot be attributed only to calcium since all coatings had the same calcium dip.…”

“…The use of edible coatings enriched with antimicrobial or antioxidants has proved to be efficient in preserving the quality during storage of many fruit (Antunes et al, 2012;Campos et al, 2011;Guerreiro et al, 2015;Oms-Oliu et al, 2010;Zúñiga et al, 2012). Polysaccharide-based edible coatings, such as alginate (AL) and pectin (PE), are often used due to their capacity to form rigid and stable gels (Campos et al, 2011;Salmieri and Lacroix, 2006).…”

The effect of alginate-based edible coatings enriched with essential oils constituents on Arbutus unedo L. fresh fruit storage

“…Edible coatings of different composition have been tested and used to prolong storage life of fresh and fresh-cut fruit, reducing metabolic processes and retarding microbial growth, and can also create a protective barrier to reduce respiration and transpiration rates, retarding senescence while preserving quality (Fisk et al, 2008;Gonzalez-Aguilar et al, 2008;Vargas et al, 2008;Antunes et al, 2012;Dhall, 2013;Valencia-Chamorro et al, 2013).…”

“…They have a high potential to carry active ingredients such as anti-browning agents, colorants, flavors, nutrients, spices and antimicrobial compounds that can extend product shelf-life and reduce the risk of pathogen growth on food surfaces (Gonzalez-Aguilar et al, 2008;Oms-Oliu et al, 2010;Antunes et al, 2012;Zúñiga et al, 2012).…”

Antimicrobial films based on cellulose-derived hydrocolloids. A synergetic effect of host–guest interactions on quality and functionality

“…Cellulose derived materials may also be utilized as biodegradable systems for controlled release of antimicrobial agents in particular [12][13][14]. As recent developments in this field are gaining popularity, more and more edible films are being explored for their potential to be a useful tool to protect food produce from spoilage [15,16]. Further intended applications include food packaging to aid preservation and lengthen shelf-life.…”