BARRIER FILM COMPOSITION
Presented herein are barrier film compositions that can be used to extend the shelf life of agricultural products. The barrier film compositions can comprise a monoglyceride, a fatty acid or a salt thereof, a biopolymer, and water and have a yield stress of at least 0.1 Pa.
1 . A barrier film composition, comprising:
a monoglyceride;
a fatty acid or a salt thereof;
a biopolymer; and
water,
wherein the barrier film composition has a yield stress of at least 0.1 Pa as assessed by oscillatory rheology at 1 Hz and 25° C.
2 . The barrier film composition of claim 1 , wherein the yield stress is about 0.1 Pa to about 6 Pa, about 2 Pa to about 5 Pa, about 0.3 Pa to about 0.7 Pa, or about 0.8 Pa to about 1.4 Pa.
3 . The barrier film composition of claim 1 , wherein the viscosity of the barrier film composition is about 0.001 Pa·s to about 0.1 Pa·s at a shear rate of 5000 s−1 and at a temperature of 25° C.
4 . The barrier film composition of claim 1 , wherein the barrier film composition comprises about 5 g/L to about 150 g/L of the monoglyceride.
5 . The barrier film composition of claim 1 , wherein the barrier film composition comprises about 0.1 g/L to about 10 g/L of the fatty acid or a salt thereof.
6 . The barrier film composition of claim 1 , wherein the barrier film composition comprises about 1.5 g/L to about 8 g/L of the biopolymer.
7 . The barrier film composition claim 1 , wherein the biopolymer comprises a polysaccharide, a protein, or a combination thereof.
8 . The barrier film composition of claim 1 , wherein the biopolymer comprises xanthan gum, guar gum, pectin, gum Arabic, carrageenan, potassium alginate, ammonium alginate, calcium alginate, sodium alginate, agar, cellulose, starch, chitosan, or a combination thereof.
9 . The barrier film composition of claim 1 , wherein the biopolymer comprises soy protein isolate, wheat gluten, collagen, whey protein isolate, albumen, zein, chickpea protein isolate, caseinate, gelatin, or a combination thereof.
10 . The barrier film composition of claim 1 , wherein the monoglyceride has a carbon chain length of about C10 to about C20.
11 . The barrier film composition of claim 1 , further comprising one or more wetting agents.
12 . The barrier film composition claim 1 , further comprising an anionic surfactant.
13 . The barrier film composition of claim 12 , wherein the anionic surfactant comprises sodium decyl sulfate, sodium N-lauroyl-N-methyltaurate, sodium tetradecyl sulfate, sodium dodecyl sulfate, or a combination thereof.
14 . A method of coating plant matter, the method comprising:
applying the barrier film composition of claim 1 to a surface of the plant matter.
15 . The method of claim 14 , wherein applying the barrier film composition to the surface of the plant matter comprises dipping the plant matter into the barrier film composition or spraying the barrier film composition onto the surface of the plant matter.
16 . The method of claim 14 , wherein following application of the barrier film composition, the rate of water loss from the plant matter is reduced.
17 . The method of claim 14 , wherein following application of the barrier film composition, the rate of CO2 production by the plant matter is reduced.
18 . The method of claim 14 , wherein following application of the barrier film composition, the rate of mass loss of the plant matter is reduced.
19 . The method of claim 14 , further comprising allowing the barrier film composition to at least partially evaporate for a period time of about 30 seconds to about 180 seconds.
20 . The method of claim 14 , wherein the plant matter comprises a fruit, a vegetable, a leaf, a stem, bark, a seed, a flower, a peel, a root, or a combination thereof.