News Research
Plant-based packaging film could extend soft fruit shelf life

An international team of scientists from Nanyang Technological University in Singapore and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston, Mass., has developed a ‘smart’ food packaging material which is biodegradable, sustainable and even kills dangerous micro-organisms which are harmful to human health. The new material could also extend the shelf life of soft fruit for up to three days.

The waterproof packaging is made from a type of corn protein called zein, starch and other naturally derived biopolymers which are then infused with a mixture of organic antimicrobial compounds such as oil of thyme and citric acid. In controlled lab experiments, the packaging released natural antimicrobial compounds when exposed to increased humidity and killed common harmful bacteria such as E. Coli and Listeria, as well as fungi. |READ MORE