Published in Scientific Bulletin. Series F. Biotechnologies, Vol. XXIV, Issue 2
Written by Șerban-Eugen CUCU, Mona Elena POPA
Bread shelf life in our society is a problem if we look in food waste zone. In the studies of bread shelf-life, an important role is carried out by the various packaging materials and technological solutions that exist. Traditionally, packaging materials had to be as inert as possible (this method is so-called passive packaging), and because of this bread was protected against the main causes of spoilage, namely the presence of oxygen and mold. Most recent, films made of synthetic polymers that have low gas permeability, coupled with the modification of the packaging headspace through decreasing oxygen levels below 0.1% and also the use of a new concept called active packaging that allows the packaging material to interact with the food products, thus improving the bread shelf-life drastically. The new concepts of active packaging and intelligent packaging, in which the new developed functional materials deliberately interact with bread in order to prolong or monitor the shelf life and the use of nanomaterials represent the top of innovation in this field. Technological aids such as natural antimicrobial compounds or sourdough utilization can be very useful tools used to improve bread quality and shelf life. Finding adequate bread packaging systems, in addition with technological interventions on formulation and breadmaking technologies, can increase significantly bread shelf life. This paper will review the literature for various state of the art packaging and technological solutions for bread shelf life and quality improving.
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