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Improving southern Africa’s export of fruits

In the ENVIROPAK project southern Africa's export of fruits and nuts was improved through enhanced product quality and extension of shelf-life by application of edible coatings with suitable barrier properties. The coatings were manufactured from waste products of sorghum processing.

The pear is coated with an invisible protein coating which gives it enhanced quality and doubled shelflife

An inexpensive, renewable raw material, sorghum bran, from southern Africa' s indigenous sorghum cereal industry was be used to extract the protein kafirin, which is water insoluble, non-allergenic, and has good gas barrier and mechanical properties, i.e. kafirin makes excellent edible barrier coatings. Extraction and coating procedures were developed as well as a thermoplastic processing, sensory evaluation of coated fruits and peanuts and controlled release of preservatives from coatings to products, all through a multi-disciplinary approach in co-operation with the fruit export industry.

Some of the direct results are:

  • coatings doubled the shelf life of exported pears and reduce hydrolytic rancidity in coated cashew nuts
  • the coating is highly functional, yet hardly detectable by eye, and was found sensorically acceptable even by test panels from southern Africa used to fresh fruits and nuts
  • the coatings actively reduce microbial spoilage
  • transparent protein films as well as coated paper for packaging and bags could be produced by commercial film blowing and extrusion techniques

Summary

Project name

Enviropak

Status

Completed

Region

Other than Sweden

RISE role in project

Coordinator

Project start

Duration

3 years

Total budget

900 000 Euro

Partner

University of Pretoria South Africa, CSIR South Africa, IFR UK, NRC Italy, University Eduardo Mondlane, Mozambique, University of Mauritius

Funders

EU INCO 2

Coordinators

Supports the UN sustainability goals

2. Zero hunger
5. Gender equality
8. Decent work and economic growth
10. Reduced inequalities
17. Partnerships for the goals
Mats Stading

Contact person

Mats Stading

Senior forskare

+46 76 127 26 03

Read more about Mats

Contact Mats
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