Authors Nida Firdous,Moazzam Rafiq Khana, Masood Sadiq Butt, Ali, Muhammad Asim Shabbir,Ahmad Din, Abid Hussain, Azhari Siddeeg &Muhammad Faisal Manzoor
Climacteric fruits such as tomatoes are highly perishable, have a limited shelf life (7 to 10 days), and are prone to early quality deterioration under ambient conditions. Tomatoes are susceptible to ethylene and tend to ripen sharply, particularly after harvest. Thats why; growers need to slow down the ripening process of tomatoes after harvest to make them available to the commercial markets a wholesome fruit. Tomatoes are a vital source of nutritional and therapeutic compounds, including ascorbic acid, sugars, total phenols, flavonoids, carotenoids, and lycopene. For maintaining the fruit texture, cell wall compounds such as pectin play essential roles in tomato fruit softening and texture integrity. Meanwhile, undesired storage environments and microbial/fungal attacks may primarily affect such compounds, thus leading to postharvest quality losses of tomatoes. The edible coating is a robust approach to enhancing the shelf life of the produce by preventing anaerobiosis in perishable fruit like tomatoes. Various kinds of biodegradable, edible coatings (i.e. seed mucilage, microbial gums, pectin polysaccharides, corn starch, gum arabic, polyalcohols, etc.) are in practice to overcome postharvest losses in horticultural products . Edible coatings create a modified atmosphere by generating a semi-permeable barrier against O2, CO2, solute, and moisture exchange. Subsequently, oxidation rate, respiration rate, ethylene production, textural strength, flavour quality, and water loss remained controlled, maintaining the fruit quality for a longer time. Hydrocolloidal Aloe vera gel (AVG) can potentially extend the shelf life and maintain the postharvest quality of various perishable products. The AVG contains 99% gel component along with numerous essential substances such as polysaccharides, amino acids, organic acids, minerals (zinc, calcium, copper, magnesium, manganese, and phosphorus), essential enzymes, sterols, gibberellins, and water- and fat-soluble vitamins and phenolic compounds, many of which have antimicrobial and anti- mutagenic properties. The AVG is generally considered a safe (GRAS) coating material due to its accessible biochemical properties, biodegradability, antimicrobial action, non-toxicity, film- forming properties, and eco-friendly nature. It is bio- preservative, affordable, technologically viable, and easily applicable. The AVG contains various components exhibiting antimicrobial activities, such as anthraquinones that could show the inhibitory potential against Staphylococcus aureus and E. coli. The mechanism behind its antimicrobial action is the inhibition of solute transport through membranes. A previous study reported its effectiveness against food- borne pathogens such as Salmonella typhimurium, Klebsialla pneumonia, Bacillus cereus, and E. coli. AVG-based edible coatings seem like a green alternative attributed with cost-effective and readily available than already existing synthetic materials.
