Flexfresh packaging solution can extend shelf life of produce

In 2014, India-based flexible packaging company Uflex Limited decided to offer shelf life extension solutions to the Indian fresh produce industry. With the help of its foreign technology partner, Uflex came out with a solution.

“The solution Equilibrium Modified Atmospheric Packaging (EMAP) entails maintaining consistent oxygen and carbon dioxide inside the bag during the shelf life of the produce,” said Ashok Chaturvedi, chairman and managing director, Uflex.

“During the initial phase of trials, the technical team came up with the nuances of tropical produce and felt that the traditional polymers being used for shelf life extension of fresh produce may not work,” he said. “Their sound logic was that most polymers available were either good barriers to oxygen or water, and it is critical to have a unique polymer which could offer the precise requirements of both oxygen and water barriers. In fact, all existing fresh produce packaging solutions in the world grappled with the problem of water condensation inside the bag—a fact that was established during our market study. Also for products that perspired heavily, it was found that the MAP did not work due to higher CO2 inside the bag changing the organoleptic of the produce.”

This is critical for fresh produce packaging because oxygen needs to be maintained to keep the product in aerobic conditions. During transpiration, humidity gets released and condenses inside the bag, causing fungal and bacterial infections on the produce.

“Thus was conceived Flexfresh with the holy grail of oxygen and water barrier for packaging fresh produce,” said Chaturvedi. “Flexfresh, while maintaining the humidity inside the bag at 98%, keeps the product absolutely dry without allowing condensation of the humidity. This results in very low weight loss of the produce as it continues to breathe in hydrated oxygen available inside the bag. In several experiments on various products, it was observed that the ratio of oxygen and carbon dioxide has always been maintained at equilibrium. The film provides good release characteristics of CO2 emitted by the produce. This ensured that the produce in a few cases could be protected naturally from diseases such as botrytis, gray mold etc using high CO2 content. The icing on the cake is that while offering all the benefits, Flexfresh Film is biodegradable by composting.”

A leading Dutch bell pepper exporter has commenced shipping its produce to the United States by sea containers, which was not possible earlier and used to be sent out by air, incurring huge costs. The exporter is happy with the arrival quality and intends to export more than 100 containers from Holland to the United States in 2016 after conducting successful trials by sea container early in 2015.

Uflex is working with several supermarkets around the world for establishing the benefits of Flexfresh in potatoes, brussel sprouts, papaya, grapes, berries, pomegranates, flowers, beans, broccoli, cauliflower, mango, okra, mushroom, and cut vegetables.

The company and its partner will be conducting a series of trials to study the advantages and benefits of using Flexfresh for shelf life extension.

Access www.uflexltd.com for more details.