{"id":13572,"date":"2021-07-27T12:11:03","date_gmt":"2021-07-27T11:11:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.innovationnewsnetwork.com\/?p=13572"},"modified":"2021-07-27T12:11:03","modified_gmt":"2021-07-27T11:11:03","slug":"enhancing-food-preservation-mango-based-bioplastic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.innovationnewsnetwork.com\/enhancing-food-preservation-mango-based-bioplastic\/13572\/","title":{"rendered":"Enhancing food preservation with mango-based bioplastic"},"content":{"rendered":"
The research team from the University of Cadiz and the University of Aveiro\u2019s Biopol4fun<\/a> group have developed a bioactive or functionalised plastic made from nanocellulose and mango leaf extracts that preserve food for longer than non-functionalised plastics.<\/p>\n The novel packaging has been developed to preserve the properties of food for a greater period of time without requiring additional chemical additives as the packaging acts as an active barrier favouring preservation.<\/p>\n To aid with their findings, the team contrasted two methods for acquiring the packaging. The traditional technique entailed dissolving the components in a subsequently removed solvent.<\/p>\n The second method used did not necessitate chemical solvents but instead utilised supercritical CO2<\/sub> to functionalise the polymer, which offers the bioplastic more efficient physico-chemical and bioactive properties than those acquired by standard treatment. This technique both prolongs food preservation and plays the role of a barrier against food pathogens.<\/p>\n This bioactive packaging \u2013 with antimicrobial and antioxidant properties from mango leaf extract \u2013 improves the defensive barrier against ultraviolet light. \u201cThanks to it, food wrapped in this film could be preserved longer without the addition of preservatives. The film itself replaces the chemical additive since the active substance exerts its effect via the packaging without the need to add anything to the food,\u201d explained Cristina Cejudo, researcher at the University of Cadiz and co-author of the study.<\/p>\n In order to develop the bioplastic, the team utilised leaf extracts utilised from the cultivation of mango from the experimental farm of the Institute of Subtropical and Mediterranean Horticulture<\/a> \u2018La Mayora\u2019 in Malaga. Meanwhile, the nanocellulose used to form the polymer is derived from the chemical and enzymatic treatment of a paper industry waste product.<\/p>\n Utilising these materials, the group has developed two procedures to contrast their physical properties and bioactive function, as laid out in the study called \u2018Biobased films of nanocellulose and mango leaf extract for active food packaging: Supercritical impregnation versus solvent casting\u2019, which has been published in the journal\u00a0Food Hydrocolloids<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n For the traditional casting method, the process employed by the researchers entailed dissolving the mango leaf extract and the nanocellulose and consequently polymerising and drying out the solvents at a temperature of 45\u00baC.<\/p>\n For the treatment centred on the supercritical impregnation technology, they used an extract formerly acquired by the same method. \u201cBy doing so, a better dissolution of the extract is achieved during the impregnation of the polymer, since the mango extract penetrates into the composition of the nanocellulose at the surface level, which favours the migration of the active compounds, thereby taking less time to exert its preservative action,\u201d said Cejudo.<\/p>\nDeveloping bioactive packaging<\/h3>\n
Supercritical solvent impregnation<\/h3>\n