Introduction

Food security is an emerging challenge for policy makers and companies

in the food supply chain. The global population is expected to grow to 9 billion
and demand for food by 77 per cent by 2050. Over the same period food
production will be under threat from climate change, competing land uses,
erosion and diminishing supplies of clean water. One of the solutions to this
dilemma is increased efficiency and waste reduction in the food supply chain
(Anonymous, 2013). This focuses on packaging opportunities that may help to
reduce or recover food waste. Packaging has a vital role to play in containing
and protecting food as it moves through the supply chain to the consumer. It
already reduces food waste in transport and storage. Innovations in packaging
materials, design and labelling provide new opportunities to improve
efficiencies. Product protection needs to be the primary goal for packaging
sustainability and sometimes this requires trade-offs between packaging and
food waste.
Peach (Prunus persica L. Batsch) being from Roseaceae family is a
very popular summer fruit crop of temperate and subtropical regions of the
world. The production of peach fruit in India is about 93.52 thousand MT on an
area of 18.10 thousand hactares (Anonymous, 2014). However, in Jammu
province peach fruit is cultivated on an area of 1795042 hactares with an annual
production of 1941.42 MT (Anonymous, 2015). Peach fruit becomes available
in early summer to the market and fill market with its fresh and pleasing arrival.
However, the fruits are highly perishable and sensitive to high temperature and
low humidity, which prevails during its harvesting period and it leads to heavy
post harvest losses (Kavs et al., 2013). There are certain other post harvest
constraints like chilling sensitivity and susceptibility to diseases that limit its
long duration storage and transportation. To denigrate these problems extensive
research work has been conducted to prolong the shelf life of fruits by using

different types of chemicals and coatings in order to control physiological

disorders and quality loss. However, recent years have been experienced with
considerable pressure from consumers side to reduce or eliminate chemically
synthesized additives in foods (Robert et al., 2003).
Peaches are important temperate fruit crop well adapted to sub-tropical climate.
Peaches are climacteric fruits with short post harvest life. Degradation in quality
of fruits in storage is mostly due to its relatively high metabolic activity during
storage. Cold storage is widely used to reduce respiration rate, ethylene
production and to extend the shelf life of fruits (Fattahi et al., 2010). Ethylene is
a gaseous plant hormone that at very low concentrations plays a major role in
the regulation of metabolism of harvested horticultural crops (Saltveit, 1999). In
general, the ethylene can influence the post harvest life of both climacteric and
non-climacteric fruits by affecting their quality attributes and development of
physiological disorders and post harvest diseases (Palou et al., 2003). The effect
of ethylene can be reduced by inhibitors of ethylene biosynthesis and increase
enzyme antioxidant activity (Khan et al., 2003). Salicylic acid is known as
signal molecule in the induction of defense mechanism in plants. SA is well
known phenol that can prevent ACO activity that is a direct precursor of
ethylene and decrease ROS with increase enzyme antioxidant activity (Khan et
al., 2003). SA delays the ripening of banana fruit (Srivastava and Dwivedi,
2000), inhibits ethylene production in kiwifruit (Fattahi et al., 2010). Han and
Li (2000) also reported that salicylic acid reduce the respiration rate and
peroxidase activity reduced in treated peach fruits compared with control, the
peak of ethylene production was delayed and electrolyte leakage was reduced
after 5-7 days. The polyphenoloxidase [catechol oxidase] activity of treated
fruits decreased after 2 days of storage then later increased. SA immersions
inhibited the respiration rate and delayed the ethylene production peak of
ripening peaches. However, the cell membrane electrolyte leakage of SA-treated

fruit were higher than the control during the early days, but lower at the
subsequent days (Han et al., 2003) Therefore, SA gave the better post harvest
maintenances of fruits i.e. decreasing loss of fruit firmness, decreasing the
losses of titritable acid, soluble solids or ascorbic acid in many fruits. The
exogenous SA may inhibit the respiration and delay the peak of ethylene
production in peach. It may inhibit the process of lignifications and its related
enzymes such as phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL), polyphenol oxidase
(PPO), cinnamyl alcohol dehydrogenase (CAD) and peroxidase (POD). The
effects of SA in various fruits may be dependent on its concentrations applied.
In general SA has a potential in the application for better post harvest
maintenance of horticulture crops and further investigations regarding
concentration and combination with other techniques in different horticultural
products needs to be investigated. The objective of present study was also to
determine the effect of SA application on the quality and storage life of during
storage.
Like other stonefruit, peaches is closely related (Brady, 1993), have a
characteristic, lignified endocarp (pit or stone) that encloses the seed, a fleshy
mesocarp and a thin exocarp. On the basis of the separation of the stone from
the flesh, peache can be divided into two groups: freestone and clingstone. In
addition, based on the amount of softening of the flesh that occurs during
ripening, peaches can be either of a melting or non-melting type. Melting fruit
will soften to below 8N firmness, while non-melting fleshed fruit will soften to
16N or higher. Polygalacturonase (PG) activity has been reported to be different
between these two peach types (Lester et al., 1996). Most cultivars have yellow
flesh, but white-fleshed cultivars have always been known and are being
increasingly planted and currently are 30% of the plantings of the yellow flesh
cultivars. The peel of both types may be highly colored due to the accumulation
of anthocyanin.

Peaches with low, medium or high acid concentrations are also available
(Genard et al., 1999). Peach fruit is rich in ascorbic acid (vitamin C),
carotenoids (provitamin A), and phenolic compounds that are good sources of
antioxidants (Tomas-Barberan et al., 2001; Byrne, 2002).
In Jammu and Kashmir, peach cultivation is confined to a limited
acreage, mainly in temperate zones. However, with the introduction of low
chilling, high quality, prolific bearing exotic cultivars such as Flordasun, Shane-Punjab, Florda Red, Sun Red, Florda Prince etc. into India and their
subsequent recommendation for cultivation in the sub-tropical regions of J&K
state, the area under peach cultivation is increasing year after year. Total area
under peach in Jammu province is estimated to be about 1,808.82 hectare with
estimated production of about 2,131.37 metric tonnes (Anonymous, 2015 b).
Active Packaging (AP) is a modern development consisting of a group
of techniques in which the package is self-motivated and is actively involved
with food products or act together with internal atmosphere to extend the shelf
life while maintaining quality and safety. Active packaging is sometimes
referred to as interactive or smart packaging which is planned to sense internal
or external environmental changes and to take action by changing its own
properties or attributes. Potential techniques used in active packaging are the
use of oxygen scavenging/carbon dioxide, ethylene and moisture absorbing
systems by placing sachets, incorporation of antimicrobial agents into polymer
surface coatings or in plastics films, sheets or on materials and into the pads for
fresh produce (John, 2008). Oxygen scavengers/absorbers are capable of
reducing oxygen levels in the headspace of packages, and can be effective with
respiring fruits (Caner et al., 2008). On the other hand, ethylene is a plant
hormone responsible for the ripening of fruit. It also decreases the fruits
susceptibility to pathogens with a net reduction in post harvest life. Therefore,

ethylene inhibition or its removal should be used to maintain post harvest

quality. (Aday and Caner, 2011).
The use of low O2 concentrations of 15% and high CO2 concentrations of 5
10% with a cold storage environment have been used to extend the shelf life of
fruits and vegetables. Under these conditions, the products tolerance to high
levels of CO2 has to be carefully considered. High CO2 levels may cause
physiological disorders, off flavours and decay susceptibilities.10 Under normal
concentrations, however, CO2 reduces the respiration rates and prevents
deterioration of fruits and vegetables. This extension in shelf life results in
longer distribution channels and improved product value.
Ethylene is a plant hormone responsible for the ripening of fruit. During
storage; ascending concentration of ethylene could result in significant quality
loss. This tends to accelerate the ripening and senescence processes in plants.It
also decreases the fruits susceptibility to pathogens with a net reduction in postharvest life. Therefore, ethylene inhibition or its removal should be used to
maintain post-harvest quality. One tool for ethylene removal is the absorber
sachet,

which

contains

zeolite

compound.

Zeolites

are

volcanic

aluminosilicate crystalline materials. They have been used in many applications

areas because of their cation exchange properties and open-porous structures.
Various researchers have reported that ethylene absorbers can extend the shelf
life by decreasing the ripening of various items of produce.
Packaging is defined as enclosing food to protect it from tampering or
contamination from physical, chemical and biological sources. Packaging
maintains the benefits of food processing after the process is complete, enabling
foods to travel safely for long distances from their point of origin and still be
wholesome at the time of consumption. The primary purpose of food packaging
is to protect the food against attack from oxygen, water vapor, ultraviolet light,
and both chemical and microbiological contamination. Active packaging as

originally described by Labuza and Breene (1989) is used successfully to

increase the shelf life of processed foods and meet consumer demands in terms
of providing high-quality products that are also fresh and safe. Active Packaging
is an innovative concept that can be defined as a mode of packaging in which
the package, the product, and the environment interact to prolong shelf life or
enhance safety or sensory properties, while maintaining the quality of the
product. This is particularly important in the area of fresh and extended shelflife foods. Intelligent packaging has been defined as packaging systems which
monitor the condition of packaged foods to give information about the quality
of the packaged food during transport and storage (Ahvenainen, 2003).
. Objectives:
The present study entitled Enhancing post harvest life of peach (Prunus
persica) using active packagingwill be undertaken with the following
objectives:
1. To evaluate the potential of active packaging in preserving quality of
peach fruits.
2. To monitor the changes in quality attributes during refrigerated storage.
3. To assess the storability and economics of the packed fruits.

Detail of treatments
On arrival in the laboratory the fruit was completely checked and
injured/damaged fruits were rejected. The selected fruit was washed by treating
with cacl2, then the fruit was completely dried. the drid fruit was packed trays in
polythene bags with different densities and different perforations.8 fruits were

packed in each bag in each trays inside the polyethylene. each of the bag was
treated with oxygen scavenger or ethylene absorber and was kept under
refrigerated conditions. There were 13 treatments with three replications as per
details given below :
Refrigrated temperature
T1 : control

No packaging film

T2: Ethylene absorber with no perforations

polypropylene film

T3: Oxygen absorber with no perforations

polypropylene film

T4: Ethylene absorber with 4 perforations

polypropylene film

T5 : Oxygen absorber with 4 perforations

polypropylene film

T6: Ethylene absorber with 8 perforations

polypropylene film

T7: Oxygen absorber with 8 perforations

polypropylene film

T8: Ethylene absorber with no perforations

polypropylene film

T9: Oxygen absorber with no perforations

low density polyethylene

T10 : Ethylene absorber with 4 perforations

low density polyethylene

T11: oxygen absorber with 4 perforations

low density polyethylene

T12: ethylene absorber with 8 perforations

low density polyethylene

T13: Oxygen absorber with 8 perforations

low density polyethylene

The perforations were obtained by making pin holes.