Modified Atmosphere Packaging Design for Fruits and Vegetables

Modified Atmosphere Packaging Design for Fruits and Vegetables

Rahul Kumar Anurag, Sandeep Mann Swati Sethi and Yogesh Kalnar
ICAR-CIPHET, Ludhiana-141004, Punjab
Modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) of fresh fruits and vegetables relies on modification of the atmosphere
inside the package, achieved by the natural interplay between two processes, the respiration of the product and the
transfer of gases through the packaging, that leads to an atmosphere richer in CO2 and poorer in O2. This atmosphere
can potentially reduce respiration rate, ethylene sensitivity and production, decay and physiological changes, namely,
oxidation (Kader, Zagory & Kerbel, 1989; Saltveit, 1993). Produce physiology, more specifically, postharvest produce
physiology, including respiration, senescence, transpiration (or water loss), and environmental stress responses, as
well as produce biochemistry, such as ethylene synthesis, enzymatic browning, chlorophyll degradation, metabolism
of aroma-active volatiles, and nutrient degradation, directly determine the shelf life and quality of fresh-cut fruits and
vegetables stored under modified atmosphere packaging (MAP). Respiration is an essential physiological process
that keeps the cells and organism alive or fresh for produce after being freshly cut. In addition, respiration has been
hypothesized to be responsible for senescence and/or deterioration of postharvest fruits and vegetables (Kader
1986). In climacteric fruits, the increase in respiration (or CO2 production) rates coincides with ripening, softening,
and/or color changing. During postharvest storage of fruits and vegetables, there generally is an inverse relationship
between respiration rate and shelf life. For fresh-cut products either under MAP or air, respiration is the mostly
measured physiological activity noted in the research. There have been tremendous efforts in the literature to use
respiration rates of fresh-cut products for indicating quality changes, selecting packaging materials, and predicting
equilibrium and beneficial headspace O2 and CO2 contents (Jacxsens et al., 2000,). The plant hormone ethylene has
different physiological effects on postharvest fruit and vegetable quality. It accelerates ripening of many fruits,
senescence of leaves and flowers, rates of respiration, and changes of leaf and fruit pigments, such as banana,
tomato, and broccoli.
Methods of Modified atmosphere packaging
Methods of atmosphere modification within a packaged food product can be sub-divided into two main categories:
Active modification & passive modification. Several methods can be used to actively modify the gas atmosphere
within the packaged product. This includes vacuum packaging, MAP, the use of gas or scavenger of oxygen,
moisture absorbers, or CO2 and ethanol emitters and of gas injection. In commodity-generated or passive modification,
the product is modified as a result of the consumption of O2 and generation of CO2 through respiration of the
product. Passive modification is commonly used to modify the gas atmosphere of packaged fruits and vegetables.
However, in order to maintain the correct gas mixture within the packaged product, the gas permeability of the
packaging films must be equal to rate of respiration of product, which allows O2 to enter the package at a similar rate
as respiration of product. This process is also known as equlibrium modified atmosphere packaging EMA. Similarly,
CO2 must be vented from the package to offset the production of CO2 by the product. Failure to accomplish this gas
balance might result in a depletion of O2 and a buildup of CO2 resulting in spoilage of products. MAP is simply as
extension of vacuum packaging technology, which involves the evacuation of air followed by the injection of the
appropriate gas mixture.
The objective of MAP design is to define conditions that will create the atmosphere best suited for the extended
storage of a given produce and to minimize the period of time to achieve this atmosphere. A MAP system not
properly designed may be ineffective or even shorten the storage life of a product. If the desired atmosphere is not
established rapidly, the package has no benefit. For example, high perishable products may deteriorate before the
recommended atmosphere is attained. If O2 and/or CO2 levels are not within the recommended ranges of O2 and
CO2 concentrations the product may experience serious alterations and its storage life is shortened. It may even
induce anaerobiosis, with the possible growth of pathogens and concomitant effects on product safety.

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Respiration rate
Control of respiration is an important effect of atmosphere modification on post-harvest life of fruits and vegetables.
High respiration rates are associated with rapid deterioration of the product. There are three methods for measuring
respiration rates: the flow-through system, the closed system, and the permeable system. Design of a MAP system
that will prolong the storage or shelf life of fresh product requires the mathematical equation for predicting the
respiration rate at the various influencing factors. Thus, the respiration rate model is central to the design of MAP for
fresh fruits and vegetables The live tissue of fresh fruits and vegetables respires and transpires. The respiration rate
varies greatly among different species, and depends heavily on temperature. As a result, MAP of fresh produce
requires a different approach as compared to other products. The main goal of modified atmosphere applied to fruits
and vegetables is to minimize the respiration rate of the product. This includes suppressing the production of ethylene,
a gas responsible for accelerating ripening and deterioration, and hastening the onset of senescence in fruits and
vegetables.
On the other hand, the use of MAP techniques with fresh produce, especially fruits, has a few potential hazards.
The complete elimination of oxygen from the package quickly results in anaerobic respiration, the production of
ethylene, and, subsequently, a fast and dramatic deterioration of the product quality. This is normally due to the
accumulation of acetaldehyde, ethanol, and organic acids, the development of off flavours, and, finally, the discoloration
and the softening of the tissue.
The closed system method is more efficient for measuring respiration rates as a function of gas concentrations.
This method involve monitoring the O2 and CO2 concentrations inside a closed jar contain in the product as a
function of time (Haggar et al., 1992). The initial gas concentrations inside the jar are usually those of air, but other
gas concentrations may also be used. As the product respires, the gas concentrations in the jar change with time
- from high O2 and CO2 now CO2 concentrations at the beginning to low O2/high CO2 concentrations toward the
end.
Modified atmosphere package design methodology
Fruits and vegetables being respiring produce when stored in a package comprised of a plastic film, it serves as
the regulator of O2 flow into the package and the flow of CO2 out. Assuming that there is no gas stratification inside the
package and that the total pressure is constant, the differential equations of mass balance for O2 and CO2 in MAP
containing a respiring product are (balance with N2):
These two first-order linear differential equations are useful in describing the unsteady state behaviour in passive
MAP. When the accumulated term is zero, the above Equations1 and 2 are reduced to the steady state as

Eq. 1 Eq. 3

Eq. 2 Eq. 4

The above equations describe the dynamic equilibrium behaviour of the MAP system, when the CO2 evolution
rate equals the efflux rate of CO2 through the package and the O2 consumption rate equals the influx rate of O2 through
the package. In most commercial package situations, steady state or dynamic equilibrium is approached within two
days. For long storage of the product, the dynamic equilibrium behaviour is more important than the unsteady state
behaviour. To use Equations 3 and4 as design equations, it is necessary to keep track of how many independent or
design variables are available. As per Table1, there are a total of 11 variables: there are a total of 11 variables: RO2,
RCO2 and M are associated with the product; PO2 , PCO2 are associated with the package; e and A are associated

190 Emerging Post-Harvest Engineering and Techological Interventions for Enhancing Farmer's Income
 Modified Atmosphere Packaging Design for Fruits and Vegetables

with the environment. Once the product and the tempera- Table 1. Variables used in designing modified atmospheric
ture are selected, six out of the 11 variables are already package
decided: RO2, RCO2 from the respiration rate model as Surrounding-related ye O2, y e CO2
reported in the literature; yO2 and yCO2 are assumed to
be the optimum O2 and CO2 concentrations and yeO2 and Input variables Package- related A, e
yeCO2 are constant, i.e., 0.21 atm and 0.0003 atm, re- Commodity- related M
spectively. With six variables fixed and two equations to Calculated variables Package-related PO2 and PCO2
satisfy, there are only (11-6-2) = 3 design variables. That Commodity-related RO2 RCO2
is, only three out of the remaining five variables (M, e, A, Response variables System-related yO2, yCO
2
PO2 and PCO2) can be specified arbitrarily. Combining
Equations 3 and 4 we get:
Where, RQ is the respiratory quotient and â is the
permeability ratio, defined as RCO2 /RO2 and PCO2/PO2,
respectively. For any packaging design, the product
characteristics such as its weight, respiration rate, density
and the optimum conditions for the best shelf life are
needed for the mathematical calculations.
The appropriate final atmosphere is formed by the interplay between the respiration of the product (for respiring
products), the initial atmosphere (air or gas mixture) and the gas transfer through the packaging material. The choice
of an adequate packaging material is the key to achieve that appropriate atmosphere, and this will be dependent on:
1. gas and water vapour permeability
2. thickness of the packaging film
3. package surface area
⎛ PCO2 ⎞
β =⎜ P ⎟
⎝ O2 ⎠

The permeability ratio (β) of a film is the ratio of its Table 2. permeability ratio (â) of different types of packaging
permeabilities to CO2 and O2. The β value of a film is a film
predictor of the relative amounts of CO2 and O2 that will Packaging Film β value
accumulate in the package.
Low density polyethylene, LDPE 6.3
i. Films with a high β value will allow CO2 to escape
the package relatively quickly, resulting in an Linear low density polyethylene, LLDPE 5.2
atmosphere with low CO2 and O2 levels. High density polyethylene, HDPE 6.0

ii. Films with a low β values will not allow CO2 to Polypropylene, PP 5.6
escape the package relatively quickly, resulting Bi-oriented polypropylene, BOPP 5.4
in an atmosphere with high CO2 and low O2 levels. Polyvinyl chloride, PVC 6.1
Most of the commercially available films have β Polyvinyl chloride, PVDC 4.8
values ranging from 3 to 6. A β value of 3 means that the Polyethylene terephthalate, PET
film will allow CO2 to exit the package 3 times faster
than O 2 enters the package. Since polymeric films Unoriented 5.1
Oriented 4.9
commonly have much higher CO2 permeability than O2 Nylon 6 4.2
permeability (Table 2), the level of CO2 that may be Nylon 11 4
obtained inside the package is limited by the O 2 Ethylene vinyl alcohol, EVOH
concentration. An important factor in determining the
correct packaging material is the oxygen transmission rate 32 mol % ethylene 31.0
44 mol% ethylene 30.0
(OTR). Packaging materials are classified according to
their barrier properties to oxygen in to:

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Rahul Kumar Anurag et al.

1. low barrier (> 300 cc/m2 day atm.)

2. medium barrier (50-300 cc/m2 day atm.)
3. high barrier (10-50 cc/m2 day atm.)
4. ultra high barrier (< 10 cc/m2 day atm.)
Polymeric films used for MAP of fresh fruits and vegetables
Many of the films used in MAP, singly do not offer all the properties required for a modified atmosphere pack.
To provide packaging films with a wide range of physical properties, many of these individual films are combined
through processes like lamination and co-extrusion. There are several groupings in MAP films. Polyethylene is most
commonly used to provide a hermetic seal and also as a medium of control for characteristics like anti-fogging
abilities, peelability and ability to seal. Using polymeric films, MA packaging systems for products with low to
medium respiration rates have to some extent been successfully developed. Products such as broccoli, mushrooms,
leeks, etc exhibit very high rates of respiration such that conventional films can potentially over modify the pack
atmosphere and thus result in fermentation. Accordingly, there has been a lot ofcommercial interest to develop films
with high gas transmission. Films that have improved rates of gas transmission by virtue of their polymeric nature are
usually blends of two or three different polymers, where each polymer of a blend performs a specific function such
as strength, transparency and improved gas transmission to meet certain product descriptions. Furthermore, films
can be laminated to achieve needed properties. Among this class are high (6–18%) ethylene–vinyl acetate content,
low-density polyethylene (Elvax, DuPont, Wilmington, DE), oriented polypropylene laminates (OPP, BP Amoco,
Lisle, IL), styrene butadiene block copolymer films (K-Resin, Phillips Chemical Company, Houston, TX) and ultra
low-density ethylene octene copolymer films (Attane series, Dow Chemical Company, Midland, MI) and polyolefin
plastomer octene copolymer films (Affinity series, DowChemical Company, Midland, MI).
Modified atmospheric packaging on different fruits and vegetables
Many plastic films have been in use for modified atmosphere packaging of varieties of produce (Table 3).
Micro-perforations for achieving optimal atmospheric conditions
Most commercial films do not provide adequate permeability to CO2 to O2 to achieve optimal concentrations
inside typical packages for MA for fruits and vegetables. Atmospheres for products with high CO2 and low O2
requirements such as fruits and vegetables can be reached by using micro-perforated films. In micro-perforated
films the micro-perforations are the primary route of gas exchange while in continuous films the polymeric material
restricts the gaseous movement into or out of the package. Micro-perforated films can provide high OTRs since the
ratio of CO2 to O2 is roughly 1, and they can mitigate the high/low concentrations of CO2/O2, respectively, which
might occur in a continuous film packaging system for high respiration rate products. Increased weight loss is
expected during postharvest storage for respiring products packaged in the currently available micro-perforated
systems. The number, position, area and length of the micro-perforations will control the atmosphere inside the
container. Micro-perforations can prevent condensation inside of the package and therefore, conditions favorable for
microbiological growth and decay of the produce. Several methods can be used to microperforate packaging materials:
1. Cold and hot needle mechanical punches,
2. Electric spark and
3. Lasers.
Produce requirements are determined by laboratory testing produce packed in a variety of perforated films. The
total flux needed by a fresh produce package to maintain a desired O2 and CO2 internal atmosphere is based on:
1. The respiration rate of the specific product,
2. The weight of the product,
3. The surface area of the package,
4. The storage temperature.

192 Emerging Post-Harvest Engineering and Techological Interventions for Enhancing Farmer's Income
 Modified Atmosphere Packaging Design for Fruits and Vegetables

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Types of modified atmosphere packaging machines for packaging of fresh fruits vegetables and minimally
processed fruits and fresh cut vegetables
Horizontal Form-fill-seal (HFFS): The flow-pack
machines are capable of making flexible pillow-pack
pouches from only one reel of film. HFFS machines can
also overwrap a prefilled tray of a product. The air from
the package is removed by continuous gas flushing, but
gas mixtures containing levels of O2 > 21% cannot be
used due to the use of hot sealing jaws at the end of the
machine. For certain very porous products (e.g. some
bakery goods), gas flushing is not capable of reducing Figure. Horizontal Form-fill-seal (HFFS)
the residual O2 within the package enough to low levels. In such cases, a gas injection station can be fitted to the
machine infeed so that the product itself is purged with gas immediately prior to packaging. Figure below illustrates
a diagrammatic representation of an HFFS machine.
Vertical Form-fill-seal VFFS machines: Similar to HFFS machines, VFFS machines are
capable of making flexible pillow-pack pouches from only one reel of film. Also, the air from
the package is removed by continuous gas flushing so long as the gas mixture does not contain
levels of O2 > 21%. In VFFS machines, gas flushed packages are gravity fed by loose product
which has been pre-weighed on a multihead weigher. Pre-flushing with gas may be necessary
for porous products. Figure at left illustrates a diagrammatic representation of a VFFS machine.
Thermoform-fill-seal (TFFS): TFFS machines produce packages consisting of a thermoformed
semi-rigid tray, which is hermetically sealed to a flexible lidding material. Rollstock film (typically
PVC/PE) is automatically conveyed into a thermoforming section where a vacuum or
Figure. Vertical
Form-fill-seal VFFS compressed air is used to draw the film into dies, giving the trays their desired shape. The
machines product is then manually or automatically loaded into the trays before evacuation, back flushing
with the desired gas mixture, and heat-sealing with lidding material. The hermetically sealed packages are then
finally separated by cross-cutting and longitudinal cutting units. Figure above illustrates a diagrammatic representation
of a TFFS machine.
Preformed Tray and Lidding Film (PTLF): PTLF machines are essentially the same as TFFS machines (see
below), except that preformed trays are used instead of thermoformed semi-rigid trays.

Three-web Thermoform-fill-seal (TWTFFS):

TWTFFS machines are essentially similar to TFFS ma-
chines (see below), except that the product to be packed
is first held in position with a permeable top web skin.
After this process, the product enters a second sealing
section where a lidding film is placed on top of the
thermoformed tray. The space between the top web skin
film and the lidding film is gas flushed. TWTFFS

Figure. Three-web Thermoform-fill-seal (TWTFFS)

machines enable packs to be produced, which combine the advantages
of MAP with vacuum skin packaging (VSP). VSP prevents product
movement, pack integrity is maximised, juice exudation is limited, and
vertical retail display is possible.
Vacuum Chamber (VC): These machines use preformed bags and utilise
Figure. Vacuum Chamber (VC) the compensated vacuum technique to replace air. Preformed plastic

194 Emerging Post-Harvest Engineering and Techological Interventions for Enhancing Farmer's Income
 Modified Atmosphere Packaging Design for Fruits and Vegetables

bags are manually placed within the chamber before evacuation, back flushing with the desired gas mixture, and heat
sealing. These machines can be used for small-scale production of vacuum or gas flushed catering packs. The figure
below illustrates a diagrammatic representation of a VC machine.
Snorkel Type (ST): These machines use the compensated vacuum technique to produce bulk MA catering bag-in-
box packs. Alternatively, they can gas flush conventionally packaged retail products, such as over wrapped packs of
red meat, into large master packs. In these machines, preformed plastic bags are positioned on a heat seal mandrel
and retractable snorkels pull a vacuum and then back-flush with a desired gas mixture before heat sealing.
Conclusion
The recommended percentage of O2 in a modified atmosphere for fruits and vegetables for both safety and
quality falls between 1 and 5%, although the oxygen level will realistically each levels below 1% in MAP produce.
The greatest extension of shelf life occurs at the lowest possible oxygen concentration before anaerobic respiration
is initiated. It is generally believed that with the use of permeable films, spoilage will occur before toxin production is
an issue; MAP of produce, however, should always incorporate packaging materials that will not lead to an anoxic
package environment when the product is stored at the intended temperature. The polymeric films of recommended
gas transmission rates and other characteristics (strong, flexible, trans- parent, durable and food grade) required for
MAP for all commodities should be produced commercially either as single polymer/coextruded/laminated for
thesuccess and popularization of MAP technology. Successful control of both product respiration and ethylene
production and perception by MAP can result in a fruit or vegetable product of high organoleptic quality; however,
control of these processes is dependent on temperature control. Along the whole food continuum, that is, processing,
storage, transportation and retailing, one needs to maintain optimum temperatures. Maintaining proper storage
temperatures is often most difficult at retail level. Oxygen, CO2, and N2, are most often used in MAP/CAS. Among
them, CO2 is the only one with a direct antimicrobial effect, resulting in an increased lag phase and generation time
during the logarithmic phase of growth. Although other gases such as nitrous and nitric oxides, sulphur dioxide,
ethylene, chlorine, as well as ozone and propylene oxide have been investigated, they have not been applied
commercially due to safety, regulatory, and cost considerations. As fruits and vegetables are more sensitive to
environmental conditions, the conditions have to be controlled precisely to achieve superior product quality and the
development of models for diûerent fruits and vegetables is a pre-requisite. Research is also needed in integrating
active packaging with MAP to make this technology economically viable. Current ethylene removing techniques
(catalytic or chemical oxidation) are not commercially successful. Active packaging involving ethylene-absorbing
substances should be studied. It is an exciting time within the MAP industry. There are emerging technologies and
opportunities that will have far reaching impact on the marketplace. Issues such as sustainability in packaging and
the impact that packaging has on current food safety issues are already providing both tremendous challenges and
opportunities. The challenge will be how to incorporate all of the desired requirements into MAP without diluting its
fundamental purpose. A package that tries to become all things to all applications becomes mediocre at best with
respect to any one requirement.
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