EVALUATION OF PACKAGING AND EDIBLE COATING ON POSTHARVEST STRAWBERRY

The strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa) fruit is considered a very delicate and highly perishable fruit. Some of the important problems of this culture are on the packaging, transportation and storage due to its fragility. The demand for new packaging and technologies that minimize contamination to the environment has increased considerably because of environmental sustainability. Biodegradable coating is one of the important tools for environmental sustainability. Some polysaccharides and derivatives have been used as edible coatings due to their gelling properties in the presence of polyvalent cations. The objective of this study was to evaluate the new design of the strawberry packaging as well as the association between the packaging and edible coatings on its postharvest preservation.