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Innovative Preservation Techniques of Fruits and Vegetables or Their Processed...
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Innovative Preservation Techniques of Fruits and Vegetables or Their Processed Products: Strategies for Safety and Quality Maintenance

A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Packaging and Preservation".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2026 | Viewed by 4560

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Lanhua Yi

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Food Science, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
Interests: fruits and vegetables; disease control; preservation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Fruits and vegetables or their processed products (e.g., fresh-cut products, frozen products, canned products, dried products, juices and drinks, and pickled and fermented products) are indispensable and widely consumed foods. With increasing concern around food safety and quality, innovative preservation techniques for fruits, vegetables, and their processed products have been developed and applied.

In this Special Issue, we invite submissions on the latest research findings and technological advancements in innovative preservation methods which can improve the safety and quality of fruits, vegetables, and their processed products. Physical, chemical, or biological preservation techniques will be considered, including irradiation, plasma treatment, physical waves, photonic technologies, high-voltage electrostatic fields, ultra-high pressure, high/low temperatures, packaging, green chemistry techniques, essential oils, plant extracts, amino acids, bioactive peptides, bacteriocins, organic acids, electrolytic water, ozonated water, active microorganisms, etc. We will pay particular attention to the efficacy of these technologies in extending shelf life, reducing microbial contamination, and maintaining color and texture. Research articles, review articles, and short communications are all welcome.

Dr. Lanhua Yi
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Foods is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • fruits and vegetables
  • processed products of fruits and vegetables
  • preservation techniques
  • microbial contamination
  • quality maintenance

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 6146 KB  
Article
Induced Electric Field Processing of Watermelon Juice: Effects on Microbial Inactivation, Physicochemical Stability, and Flavor Retention During Refrigerated Storage
by Yang Liu, Li-Li Li, Meng-Yao Fan, Zhi-Jing Ni, Run-Hui Ma, Zhao-Jun Wei and Kiran Thakur
Foods 2026, 15(8), 1426; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods15081426 - 19 Apr 2026
Viewed by 487
Abstract
Watermelon juice is a nutritious yet highly perishable beverage. Conventional thermal pasteurization ensures safety but degrades heat-sensitive nutrients, color, and flavor. Induced electric field (IEF) is an emerging technology that inactivates microorganisms while better preserving quality. However, its effects on the comprehensive quality [...] Read more.
Watermelon juice is a nutritious yet highly perishable beverage. Conventional thermal pasteurization ensures safety but degrades heat-sensitive nutrients, color, and flavor. Induced electric field (IEF) is an emerging technology that inactivates microorganisms while better preserving quality. However, its effects on the comprehensive quality retention of watermelon juice during storage remain underexplored. This study investigated the efficacy of IEF treatment on the microbial inactivation and quality preservation of watermelon juice during 25 days of storage at 4 °C. Freshly extracted watermelon juice was subjected to low-temperature IEF at 65 °C (IEF1) for 101 s and 60 °C (IEF2) for 88 s, with conventional pasteurization (65 °C, 30 min) as a control. The results showed that no colonies were detected in the IEF2 group throughout the 25-day storage period. Both IEF treatment and pasteurization effectively inhibited juice acidification. Soluble solids content and electrical conductivity remained stable under refrigeration, and the IEF group showed slower and more controllable acidity on day 25. Notably, the IEF1 group retained the highest lycopene content at the end of storage, while the IEF2 group maintained the highest total phenolic content (TPC). Furthermore, IEF treatment effectively mitigated color deterioration and preserved carbohydrate stability during refrigeration. Flavor analysis revealed that the taste profile of the IEF2 group at the initial storage stage closely resembled that of fresh watermelon juice. Over the 25-day period, the relative content of key volatile compounds characteristic of fresh watermelon decreased by only 3.64% in the IEF2 group. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innovative Preservation Techniques of Fruits and Vegetables or Their Processed Products: Strategies for Safety and Quality Maintenance)
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22 pages, 2864 KB  
Article
Chitosan-Loaded Vanillin Nanoformulation as an Edible Coating for Post-Harvest Preservation of Indian Gooseberry (Amla)
by Monisha Soni, Archana Kumari, Aarohi Singh, Sangeeta Kumari, Umakant Banjare, Nawal Kishore Dubey and Abhishek Kumar Dwivedy
Foods 2026, 15(2), 395; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods15020395 - 22 Jan 2026
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 678
Abstract
This is the first investigation that attempts to synthesize chitosan-loaded vanillin nanoformulation (vanillin-Nf) as a novel edible coating agent to prolong the storage life of Indian gooseberry (amla). Different concentrations of vanillin were encapsulated into chitosan via ionic gelation approach using sodium tripolyphosphate [...] Read more.
This is the first investigation that attempts to synthesize chitosan-loaded vanillin nanoformulation (vanillin-Nf) as a novel edible coating agent to prolong the storage life of Indian gooseberry (amla). Different concentrations of vanillin were encapsulated into chitosan via ionic gelation approach using sodium tripolyphosphate as a cross-linker. Vanillin-Nf 1:1 (w/v) exhibited maximum loading capacity (2.502 ± 0.008%) and encapsulation efficiency (54.483 ± 1.165%). The physico-chemical characterization of vanillin-Nf through SEM, DLS, FT-IR, and XRD techniques confirmed effective incorporation of vanillin into the chitosan biomatrix and formation of spherical nanocapsules, with a mean particle size of 232.83 nm, zeta potential +69.66 mV, and polydispersity index 0.296. The in vitro release profile of vanillin exhibited a biphasic and regulated release pattern. The application of vanillin-Nf as an edible coating solution on amla (Phyllanthus emblica L.) fruits was highly effective in reducing decay incidence up to 42.84% and extended their shelf-life to 15 days at 25 ± 2 °C. The vanillin-Nf coating significantly reduced weight loss in amla fruits (24.39 ± 1.02%) in comparison to control. In addition, vanillin-Nf coating also helped in preserving the key quality parameters, including pH, chlorophyll content, total soluble solids, total phenols, and antioxidant capacity of Indian gooseberries to a substantial extent at the end of storage. Collectively, our findings indicate that vanillin-Nf coating is an effective post-harvest approach for controlling decay, prolonging shelf-life, and maintaining the nutritional attributes of Indian gooseberries, highlighting its potential for commercial application in the food and agriculture industry. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innovative Preservation Techniques of Fruits and Vegetables or Their Processed Products: Strategies for Safety and Quality Maintenance)
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17 pages, 3555 KB  
Article
Nature’s Preservative: Epigallocatechin Gallate-Loaded Edible Film Extends Mango Shelf Life
by Gerui Ren, Lei Liu, Miaomiao Wang, Junjie Pan, Zhoutao Wang, Ruiqi Hu, Junmei Zhou, Xin Song, Kejun Cheng and Wenliang Cheng
Foods 2025, 14(21), 3609; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods14213609 - 23 Oct 2025
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1326
Abstract
To reduce the environmental impact of plastic packaging in the fruit supply chain, this study developed an edible natural CH-CS-EGCG coating (collagen hydrolysate-chitosan-epigallocatechin gallate) for mango preservation. The coating was prepared using an optimized CH:CS mass ratio of 1:4 with 3 wt% EGCG, [...] Read more.
To reduce the environmental impact of plastic packaging in the fruit supply chain, this study developed an edible natural CH-CS-EGCG coating (collagen hydrolysate-chitosan-epigallocatechin gallate) for mango preservation. The coating was prepared using an optimized CH:CS mass ratio of 1:4 with 3 wt% EGCG, exhibiting enhanced mechanical properties and low water vapor permeability. SEM and FT-IR analyses confirmed the successful incorporation of EGCG into the CH-CS matrix through hydrogen bonding, hydrophobic interactions, and electrostatic forces. The CH-CS-EGCG coating demonstrated superior antioxidant activity: its ABTS radical scavenging capacity and DPPH scavenging capacity were 234% and 422% higher, respectively, than those of the CH-CS coating. It also effectively inhibited bacterial growth, achieving a 92% inhibition rate against Staphylococcus aureus after 24 h of incubation. When applied to mango preservation, the CH-CS-EGCG coating significantly slowed down fruit decay and deterioration, extending the shelf life by 6 days. The CH-CS-EGCG coating offers a promising eco-friendly alternative for fruit preservation, broadening the applications of EGCG and advancing research in edible coatings. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innovative Preservation Techniques of Fruits and Vegetables or Their Processed Products: Strategies for Safety and Quality Maintenance)
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18 pages, 4030 KB  
Article
The Cyclic Peptide Cyclo-zp80r Controls Salmonella enterica and Listeria monocytogenes Replication in Non-Concentrated (NFC) Orange Juice: Antibacterial Effects and Mechanisms of Action
by Zhouxia Wang, Ping Zeng, Jinhui Lu, Sharon Shui Yee Leung and Lanhua Yi
Foods 2025, 14(14), 2506; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods14142506 - 17 Jul 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1432
Abstract
The market for non-concentrated (NFC) orange juice is increasing rapidly due to consumer demand for nutrients and flavor. However, it encounters challenges in microbial safety, particularly from Salmonella enterica and Listeria monocytogenes. This study aimed to exploit a bio-preservative for NFC orange juice. [...] Read more.
The market for non-concentrated (NFC) orange juice is increasing rapidly due to consumer demand for nutrients and flavor. However, it encounters challenges in microbial safety, particularly from Salmonella enterica and Listeria monocytogenes. This study aimed to exploit a bio-preservative for NFC orange juice. Results showed that the cyclic peptide cyclo-zp80r had good antibacterial activity, with minimum inhibitory concentration values of 2–8 μM against S. enterica and L. monocytogenes. It exhibited bactericidal action against S. enterica and bacteriostatic action against L. monocytogenes at a concentration of 128 μM. This study explored the effect of cyclo-zp80r on the pathogenicity of S. enterica and L. monocytogenes. The mortality rate of Galleria mellonella exposed to these pathogens in NFC orange juice decreased from 100% to 60% after cyclo-zp80r treatment, surpassing the effectiveness of nisin. Cyclo-zp80r exhibited depolarization effects on S. enterica and L. monocytogenes. It increased outer membrane permeability and damaged the membrane structure of S. enterica. Cyclo-zp80r also caused distinct morphological changes, mainly cell collapse in S. enterica and localized bubble-like protrusions in L. monocytogenes. It induced reactive oxygen species production and DNA binding. The species diversity and abundance in NFC orange juice were also reduced by cyclo-zp80r, particularly in the genera Pantoea, Aeromonas, Pseudomonas, and Erwinia. Additionally, cyclo-zp80r exhibited excellent stability at high temperature (121 °C, 5 min) and in fresh orange juice. These results suggest that cyclo-zp80r could be developed as an effective food bio-preservative. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innovative Preservation Techniques of Fruits and Vegetables or Their Processed Products: Strategies for Safety and Quality Maintenance)
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