Effectiveness of Chitosan Edible Coatings Incorporated with Beeswax and <i>Aloe vera</i> Extract for Active Packaging of Banana and Persimmon to Prevent Food Loss


Pervez M., Popescu G. C., Tahir A., Manzoor F., YAMAN M., Popescu M.

HORTICULTURAE, cilt.12, sa.3, 2026 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus) identifier

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 12 Sayı: 3
  • Basım Tarihi: 2026
  • Doi Numarası: 10.3390/horticulturae12030292
  • Dergi Adı: HORTICULTURAE
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus, BIOSIS, Directory of Open Access Journals
  • Erciyes Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

Active packaging using edible coating could be an essential and sustainable alternative solution to preserve the properties of fruits and to prevent food loss and food waste. Chitosan, a linear polysaccharide obtained by deacetylation of chitin, has been widely used as an edible coating of fruits. Therefore, this study aimed to develop a chitosan-based edible coating incorporated with Aloe vera and beeswax. Edible coatings were formulated with the following proportions: (% V/W: chitosan: Aloe vera: beeswax) as F1 (chitosan 79.5%: Aloe vera extract 19.5%: beeswax 1%), F2 (chitosan 79.2%: Aloe vera extract 19.2%: beeswax 1.5%), and F3 (chitosan 79%: Aloe vera extract 19%: beeswax 2%). After characterization, films were applied to Musa paradisiaca (banana) and Diospyros kaki (persimmons) varieties: Hychia and Fuyu, respectively, of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The film containing a higher concentration of beeswax, F3, attained the lowest moisture content (22.12% +/- 0.57). The edible coatings, especially (F3) treated fruits, improved significantly in the quality attributes of banana and persimmon as: % weight loss (95.11 +/- 0.023, 158 +/- 0.81), pH (5.3 +/- 0.005, 5.67 +/- 0.005), titratable acidity (0.521% +/- 0.05, 0.692% +/- 0.002), total antioxidant capacity (34.6%, 49.2%), decay incidence (30%, 45%). Chitosan and Aloe vera extract incorporated with a beeswax edible coating had a significant effect on all the studied characteristics and there was an increased shelf life for both M. paradisiaca and D. kaki. Our findings demonstrated that a coating enriched with Aloe vera extract and beeswax is an efficient bioformulation to improve shelf life, preserve the properties of fruit, and prevent food loss.