Usage of chitosan from Hermetia illucens as a preservative for fresh Prunus species fruits: a preliminary analysis

Chemical and Biological Technologies in Agriculture

Research

Anna Guarnieri¹  Micaela Triunfo¹  Dolores Ianniciello¹  Elena Tafi²  Rosanna Salvia³  Patrizia Falabella³  Carmen Scieuzo³  Thomas Hahn⁴  Susanne Zibek⁴ 

[1] Department of Sciences, University of Basilicata, Via dell’Ateneo Lucano 10, 85100, Potenza, Italy;Department of Sciences, University of Basilicata, Via dell’Ateneo Lucano 10, 85100, Potenza, Italy;CREA Research Centre for Agriculture and Environment, Via di Corticella 133, 40128, Bologna, Italy;Department of Sciences, University of Basilicata, Via dell’Ateneo Lucano 10, 85100, Potenza, Italy;Spinoff XFlies s.r.l., University of Basilicata, Via dell’Ateneo Lucano 10, 85100, Potenza, Italy;Fraunhofer Institute for Interfacial Engineering and Biotechnology IGB, Stuttgart, Germany;

关键词: Black soldier fly;    Chitosan coating;    Apricots;    Nectarines;    Peaches;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s40538-023-00480-x

 received in 2023-07-07, accepted in 2023-09-19,  发布年份 2023

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundFruit and vegetables are highly perishable. In an era where reducing food waste is absolutely essential, packaging is important for maintaining the postharvest quality of these fresh products. Research is working to reduce the use of synthetic materials, not safe for the environment and human health. In this perspective, chitosan emerges as a viable solution for this purpose, as it is biodegradable, biocompatible and also safe for food application. The growing interest in using insects as a source of chitin has allowed for increased exploitation of insect-based waste products to recover valuable materials, such as biopolymers. The black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens L.) is the most widely reared species in Europe for feed production and waste management.ResultsIn this work, fresh mature apricots (Prunus armeniaca L.), nectarines (Prunus persica vulgaris Mill.) and yellow peaches (Prunus persica var. laevis Gray) were coated with 0.5% and 1% chitosan from the pupal exuviae of Hermetia illucens, applied by spraying and stored at room temperature or 4 °C until they decay. Then, to validate the effectiveness of chitosan as a polymer for fruit preservation, several parameters including pH, TSS and weight loss were evaluated.ConclusionsThe results showed that chitosan derived from the black soldier fly is as effective as or better than the commercially available crustacean chitosan in maintaining more stable some storage parameters in fresh apricots, nectarines and peaches. Thus, insects, especially Hermetia illucens, are confirmed as a viable alternative source of the polymer.Graphical Abstract

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023

【 图 表 】

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