A novel paper-based and pH-sensitive intelligent detector in meat and seafood packaging

Authors: ALAMDARI, NAVID - Auburn University; AKSOY, BURAK - Auburn University; Aksoy, Mediha; Beck, Benjamin; JIANG, ZHIHUA - Auburn University

Submitted to: Food Control
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 11/21/2020
Publication Date: 3/1/2021
Citation: Alamdari, N.E., Aksoy, B., Aksoy, M., Beck, B.H., Jiang, Z. 2021. A novel paper-based and pH-sensitive intelligent detector in meat and seafood packaging. Food Control. 224. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.talanta.2020.121913.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.talanta.2020.121913

Interpretive Summary: The annual amount of food waste or loss is about one-third of the total edible food produced for human consumption. Continuous and real-time monitoring by spoilage detectors can reduce food waste significantly A novel paper-based pH-sensitive meat spoilage detector was developed. A mixture of hydrothermally treated soybean hulls (SBHs) in an acidic environment, bentonite, and bromocresol purple (BCP) was coated on paper to produce the detector. The resultant meat spoilage detector was evaluated as a real-time freshness and spoilage indicator of catfish fillets (Ictalurus punctatus). Freshness and spoilage of fish meat with varying weights and headspace were determined by tailoring the detector’s pH. Elemental, structural, and functional analysis verified the formation of packed SBH-bentonite matrix with enhanced gas adsorption capacity and effective BCP-immobilization. Binder nanofibrillation increased the overall visual color vibrancy and decreased the binder demand in coating formulation (from 25 to 10 parts). Headspace volume in the studied range (40 and 160 cm3) did not affect the activation time of the detectors. However, increasing fish weight decreased the detectors’ optimum activation time and pH. The findings of this study show that the developed detectors can be tailored for a wide range of sample and packaging sizes by simply adjusting the pH of the detector.

Technical Abstract: The annual amount of food waste or loss is about one-third of the total edible food produced for human consumption. Continuous and real-time monitoring by spoilage detectors can reduce food waste significantly A novel paper-based pH-sensitive meat spoilage detector was developed. A mixture of hydrothermally treated soybean hulls (SBHs) in an acidic environment, bentonite, and bromocresol purple (BCP) was coated on paper to produce the detector. The resultant meat spoilage detector was evaluated as a real-time freshness and spoilage indicator of catfish fillets (Ictalurus punctatus). Freshness and spoilage of fish meat with varying weights and headspace were determined by tailoring the detector’s pH. Elemental, structural, and functional analysis verified the formation of packed SBH-bentonite matrix with enhanced gas adsorption capacity and effective BCP-immobilization. Binder nanofibrillation increased the overall visual color vibrancy and decreased the binder demand in coating formulation (from 25 to 10 parts). Headspace volume in the studied range (40 and 160 cm3) did not affect the activation time of the detectors. However, increasing fish weight decreased the detectors’ optimum activation time and pH. The findings of this study show that the developed detectors can be tailored for a wide range of sample and packaging sizes by simply adjusting the pH of the detector.