Development of Edible Packaging Film Utilizing Sweet Potato (Ipomoea batatas Lam) Flour and Indian Spinach (Basella rubra Linn) Powder

Abstract

Edible packaging films as emerging strategy for food quality optimization extend shelf life of the product by providing a barrier to moisture, oxygen and microbial contamination. Since both sweet potato and indian spinach have abundant nutritional benefits to human well-being, low cost and can abundantly grew in diverse soil conditions, the study aimed to develop an edible packaging film from sweet potato (SP) flour and indian spinach (IS) powder. The prototype packaging film was evaluated for its physical properties, sensory qualities as well as production costs. Physical property evaluation by transparency test, tensile index, water absorption capacity, fat absorption capacity revealed that packaging films made with SP flour and 10% & IS powder have better physical properties than films with SP flour only. By superimposing the response surface regression analysis of sensory attributes, cost of production, and physical properties of the 9 treatments, the optimum formulation consist of 63.5% & SP flour and 7% & IS powder that produced packaging film with low susceptibility to microbial growth having 0.574 Aw and microbial count of 1.195 x 101.