Modified atmosphere packaging and individual shrink wrapping for fresh fruits and vegetables
Author Identifier
Mahmood Ul Hasan: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4044-1391
Zora Singh: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2946-172X
Hafiz Muhammad Shoaib Shah: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6439-5780
Document Type
Book Chapter
Publication Title
Sustainable Postharvest Technologies for Fruits and Vegetables
First Page
244
Last Page
262
Publisher
Taylor & Francis
School
School of Science
RAS ID
76301
Abstract
Fresh fruits and vegetables are perishable produce that deteriorate rapidly over time after harvest, resulting in huge losses in the postharvest and marketing supply chains. Different packaging techniques have been used for decades to protect fresh produce from environmental hazards, preserve their eating quality, and extend their storability depending on several intrinsic and extrinsic factors. The inclusion of modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) technology has revolutionised the global food industry by preserving whole produce or minimally processed products by inhibiting microbial growth, delaying senescence, and conserving quality. The use of MAP in the horticulture industry showed significant progress over the last two to three decades, in which the manufacturing of MAP bags or films prominently relying on the physiology of crops intended for storage, such as respiration, play an essential role in the permeability of gases and moisture loss. Primarily, MAP was found effective in protecting fresh-cut fruits and vegetables from microbial spoilage and maintaining storage quality. The MAP bagging or wrapping with other films has been observed as a suitable postharvest technology in mitigating different storage constraints such as substantial reduction of water loss, improved chilling tolerance against cold temperature, and lowered enzymatic browning by downregulating the increase of ROS (reactive oxygen species)–based oxidative stress in fresh fruit and vegetables. Additionally, the application of MAP also helps in delaying the degradation of colour pigments and loss of nutritional quality during the postharvest period. Apart from MAP application, individual shrink wrapping (ISW) has also been employed in the fresh produce industry to seal individual fruit using a thin film; it has shown to be a potential technique in several crops and has exhibited significant reduction of water loss during storage. This chapter briefly covers the application of MAP and ISW technologies in fruits and vegetables for prolonging storage life, maintaining quality, and discussing the limiting factors of its application in specific crops or conditions.
DOI
10.1201/9781003370376-20
Access Rights
subscription content
Comments
Hasan, M. U., Singh, Z., Shah, H. M. S., & Malik, A. U. (2025). Modified atmosphere packaging and individual shrink wrapping for fresh fruits and vegetables. In Sustainable postharvest technologies for fruits and vegetables (pp. 244-262). CRC Press. https://doi.org/10.1201/9781003370376-20