Extending Post-harvest Shelf-life of Fresh Strawberry Fruits Using Edible Coating of Plantago major Seed Mucilage with Grapefruit Essential Oil.

Background and Objectives: Strawberries are prone to spoilage post-harvest majorly due to the mold growth and decay, leading to a shortened shelf life. This study aimed to investigate storage of fresh strawberries using Plantago major seed mucilage incorporated with grapefruit essential oil as an edible coating. Materials and Methods: The study investigated storage of an edible coating prepared from Plantago major seed mucilage containing grapefruit essential oil on the physical and chemical characteristics (pH, acidity, total soluble solids and firmness), microbial quality (fungal count) and sensory attributes (color, odor, texture and overall acceptability) of refrigerated strawberries. Strawberries were coated with Plantago major seed mucilage alone or Plantago major seed mucilage with three various concentrations (0.2, 0.6 and 1%) of grapefruit essential oil and then stored at 4 °C for 10 d. Results: Microbial load increased significantly with prolonged storage time in all the treatments. While Plantago major seed mucilage coating alone modestly slowed microbial growth, combining Plantago major seed mucilage with 1% grapefruit essential oil substantially delayed microbial growth by 18%, compared to the control sample. By the end of the storage, fungal counts orderly included 4.80, 3.95, 3.83, 3.66 and 3.45 log CFU/ml for the control, Plantago major seed mucilage, Plantago major seed mucilage and 0.2% grapefruit essential oil, Plantago major seed mucilage and 0.6% grapefruit essential oil, and Plantago major seed mucilage and 1% grapefruit essential oil coated strawberries, respectively. Physicochemical and sensory characteristics (pH, acidity, total soluble solids, firmness, color, odor, texture and overall acceptability) of strawberries treated with the coating consistently outcarried out those of the untreated control. While Plantago major seed mucilage coating alone showed preservation benefits, combination of Plantago major seed mucilage with grapefruit essential oil was further effective. Conclusions: This study suggests that a Plantago major seed mucilage coating incorporating 1% of grapefruit essential oil can serve as a bioactive packaging solution to extend shelf life as well as serving as an alternative to pesticides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]