Shelf‐Life Evaluation and Predictive Modeling of Novel Functional Soup Mix Developed Using Leaves of <scp> <i>Solanum nigrum</i> </scp>

ABSTRACT Solanum nigrum (SN) is an underutilized functional food crop with documented high polyphenolic and antioxidant contents. Despite growing interest in clean‐label functional foods, no prior study has evaluated the shelf‐life stability, predictive modeling, or packaging suitability of a preservative‐free soup mix formulated using SN leaf powder—a gap this study directly addresses. In this study we have evaluated the ambient and accelerated shelf‐life conditions and used predictive modeling for the SN leaf‐based formulated soup mix in the absence of any preservatives. Metallized polyester pouches were used for the study as the packaging material. The physicochemical, microbial, and functional characteristics of the soup mix were evaluated over the shelf‐life period and were used as estimators for the predictive modeling. The physicochemical, microbial, and functional characteristics of the SN leaf‐based soup mix were evaluated over a 91‐day shelf‐life period under normal (25°C ± 2°C, 55% ± 5% RH) and accelerated (40°C ± 2°C, 90% ± 5% RH) storage conditions using Metallized Polyester (MET PET) pouches. The soup mix retained acceptable viscosity (above 1700 cP) throughout the normal storage period, while color deterioration (Δ E &gt; 6) was observed after 70 days under normal and 30 days under accelerated conditions. Functional components showed progressive but controlled reduction under normal storage, with free radical scavenging activity retaining approximately 53% of initial potency by day 91. Predictive shelf‐life modeling yielded a conservative estimate of 161 days under normal storage conditions based on first‐order moisture absorption kinetics, with corroborating support from the Logistic microbial growth model which projected 191 days before the FSSAI microbial spoilage threshold was reached. The difference between the two estimates reflects the greater stringency of the 5% moisture content threshold relative to the microbial spoilage criterion. The accelerated condition estimates (19 days, moisture model; 42 days, microbial model) confirmed the sensitivity of the product to high‐temperature and high‐humidity storage environments. This study demonstrates that the SN leaf‐based functional soup mix is shelf‐stable for approximately 161 days under recommended storage conditions without any preservatives, presenting a commercially viable clean‐label functional food product derived from an underutilized crop.