Gelatin/sodium alginate-based biodegradable films functionalized by persimmon pectin/ovalbumin-stabilized neem essential oil Pickering emulsion: Application for cherry tomato preservation

This work aims to develop a biodegradable film with enhanced mechanical, water-barrier, and antimicrobial characteristics for the preservation of cherry tomatoes. Here, a persimmon pectin/ovalbumin (PN/OVA) stabilized-neem essential oil Pickering emulsion (NOPE) was added into the gelatin/sodium alginate-based blend matrix (GS). Even the biodegradability and transmittance of NOPE-rich film were decreased as compared to the control film, its flexibility, oxygen-barrier, and water-barrier performances significantly (P < 0.05) increased by 45.23 %, 32.32 %, and 37.02 %, respectively. The NOPE-loaded films destroyed the hyphal structure and reduced spore germination of Botrytis cinerea through slow-releasing neem essential oil (NO), in turn inhibiting the growth of B. cinerea. Finally, the prepared films were applied for cherry tomato preservation. Compared with the control, 2.0 wt%-loaded GS films greatly reduced the weight loss and disease incidence of cherry tomatoes by 57.33 and 72.4 %, respectively, owing to their excellent water resistance and slow-released properties. Thus, the addition of 2.0 wt% NOPE into GS film is of particular interest in the design of active biodegradable packaging films for fruit preservation.