Effect of modified atmosphere packaging on shelf life and quality of fresh-cut pineapple

Abstract:

Consider a worker travelling home on a Bangkok BTS train, looking for a fresh fruit snack but unwilling to peel and cube a whole pineapple in transit. That simple consumer moment defines the entire fresh-cut market: convenience delivered without quality compromise. This research examined four packaging regimes — ambient air (control), MAP-1 (70% N₂ + 30% CO₂), MAP-2 (50% N₂ + 30% CO₂ + 20% O₂), and MAP-3 (30% O₂ + 70% CO₂) — applied to freshly cut pineapple cubes (Ananas comosus cv. MD-2) stored at 4 ± 1 °C for 16 days. Firmness, colour (L*, a*, b*), weight loss, titratable acidity, total soluble solids, vitamin C, total microbial load, sensory acceptability, and package headspace composition were tracked at 4-day intervals. MAP-3 consistently outperformed the other three regimes across most quality attributes. On day 16, MAP-3 samples retained 74% of day-0 vitamin C content against 31% for the control, weight loss of 2.8% against 9.2% for the control, and sensory acceptability above the rejection threshold. Total microbial count in MAP-3 remained below 4.5 log CFU/g throughout, compared with 7.2 log CFU/g in the control at day 12. The high-CO₂ regime (MAP-3) is recommended for retail fresh-cut pineapple targeting a 12–16 day distribution window.