Ayesha Sarker

The present study serves as a proof-of-concept of our previous work, as the buckwheat (BW) starch film solutions are applied as edible coatings on strawberries and as film packaging materials for strawberry preservation. The BW starch film solution was modified with citric acid (CA) for cross-linking and chitosan nanoparticles (CNP) and by ultrasound application. We tested four formulations for coating: uncoated (negative control), BW starch only (positive control), BW starch with CA and CNP, and ultrasonicated BW starch with CA and CNP. Results demonstrated that BW starch coating, with or without modifications, had positive effects in preserving strawberry quality during 14 days of refrigerated storage at 4 ± 1 °C and 82 ± 1% RH. Coating with only BW starch better suppressed weight loss; a 16% reduction in weight loss was observed compared to the uncoated counterpart at day 14. On the other hand, modifications of coating formulation played a role in preserving different fruit quality parameters. BW starch with CA and CNP had improved textural properties and reduced signs of decay. A 56% reduction in the decay index (DI) was observed in the coated fruits compared to the control. Starch coating restricted chemical changes and maintained total phenolic content (TPC) during storage. TPC in ultrasound-treated solution-coated fruits was the highest, 1.3 mg GAE/g, at the end of the storage. As packaging materials, BW starch films effectively reduced moisture loss from packaged strawberries. The future scope of the study lies in optimizing film solutions for various applications and in understanding enzymatic activities in BW starch-coated fruits.

High-pressure processing is a pasteurization procedure that allows food processors to pasteurize foods at room temperature. It is a commercially viable substitute to heat processing for producing shelf-stable foods and helps food products retain quality and safety, organoleptic properties, and nutritional values. High-pressure-processing-based technologies for fruit and vegetable and animal food products processing, enhancing shelf life and storability, and maintaining quality and food safety have shown to have considerable success in the food sector. However, addressing several concerns, including processing equipment design, production conditions, production capacity and high pressure, pasteurization, microbial safety and product quality, hygiene safety, and preservation through cutting-edge research and development, are inevitable. Further, the utilization of emerging technologies, such as intelligent production lines, next-generation cloud-based sensors, automation, robotics, and artificial intelligence for monitoring and data-driven decisions, can boost the food processing industry. The current chapter highlights the principles and practices of high-pressure processing, their impact on the quality, safety, and longevity of fruit- and vegetable-based products, challenges, and forthcoming research needs, including food process models for assessing microbial inactivation, use of smart technologies, and the necessity of university–industry collaboration and extension programming, which are essential for building up a sustainable food sector.

Summary: For enhanced nutritional and health benefits, yoghurts have been fortified with plant‐based ingredients. In this study, functional yoghurts were formulated by incorporating banana resistant starch (BRS) and green papaya powder (GPP) into partially skimmed milk (2%). These yoghurts were analysed for various parameters over a 21‐day storage period at 5 °C, including pH, titratable acidity (TA), firmness, viscosity, water activity (a_w), water‐holding capacity (WHC), colour, probiotic viability, protein and dietary fibre content, antioxidant activity (AA), and total phenolic content (TPC). The results demonstrated that the optimal addition of BRS and GPP significantly enhanced the WHC, nutritional, antioxidative, and TPC properties of the yoghurts (P < 0.05). Total dietary fibre was 73% higher, and TPC and AA were increased by 320.6% and 274%, respectively, in yoghurt containing a higher proportion of GPP than the control. During the storage period, the viable total lactic acid bacteria (LAB) counts in yoghurts were above 8 log CFU mL⁻¹. However, the formulated yoghurts exhibited decreased firmness and viscosity, as well as a darker colour (reduced L*) compared to the control, which significantly affected consumer preference (P < 0.05). Overall, the incorporation of plant‐based ingredients like BRS and GPP can effectively enhance the nutritional and functional values of yoghurts.

To monitor cucumbers' external quality, such as color changes or the presence of any damage during storage, a machine vision system was used. Red, Green, Blue (RGB) images were acquired in a "soft box," which provided a highly diffused lighting scene for observing visual changes such as color and appearance in the skin of cucumber. The RGB images were transformed into L*, a*,b*, and HSV spaces. Histograms for each channel in each color space were evaluated for image segmentation, and the blue (B) channel in the RGB color space was found superior in terms of measuring damage progression. Damage progression plots (DPP) were made from accumulated grayscale images in each of the color channels and to observe variation over time, absolute differential damage progression (ADDP) plots were generated. Overall, the order of channel utility was [B], [R, G, V], and [H, S, L*, a*, b*]. To assess which channel, in which colorspace, was most sensitive, i.e., could capture most of the information regarding day-to-day color changes, a principal component analysis (PCA) was performed. The PCA showed that all individual components in the RGB color space were suitable for obtaining information about the external changes of cucumber. Based on the results, the machine vision approach is recommended as a non-destructive technique for monitoring the external quality of stored fresh produce.