Rosehip Seed Oil-Incorporated Chitosan Films for Potential Fruit Packaging Applications

The concept of food packaging plays a crucial role in ensuring consumer satisfaction and extending the shelf life of food products. The rising trend of introducing innovative materials for food packaging has become prominent in recent years. The present study aims to investigate the impact of rosehip seed oil (RSO) on the physical, physicochemical, antioxidant, and antimicrobial properties of edible films based on chitosan for potential fruit packaging applications. Scanning electron microscopy revealed a uniform distribution of the incorporated emulsion throughout the edible film. The addition of RSO increased the deformation at break in both tensile and puncture test, thereby improving the elastic properties of the films. The resulting films exhibited a light-yellow color with high opacity. The immobilization of RSO led to a decrease in water content by almost two times and an increase in water vapor permeability of the films. The films showed enhanced antioxidant activity and retained good protective properties against the yeast S. cerevisiae. Consequently, these newly formulated multicomponent films are found to be suitable for applications in the development of active food packaging because of their physical, antioxidant, and antimicrobial properties.