Our research focuses on addressing the high rate of postharvest losses in fruits and vegetables in India due to factors such as traditional storage on farms, microorganism infestation, and limited availability of processing methods and cold chain facilities. To tackle this issue, we have developed a non-toxic and edible composite coating material made from wheat straw arabinoxylan (AX) and stearic acid derivatized oat bran β-glucan (SABG).

Our AX-SABG composite emulsion can be used to coat various perishable fruits, including apples, peaches, and bananas, to prolong their shelf life. Our coating formulation has proven to extend the post-harvest quality of various apple varieties, such as Royal Delicious and Rich Red Kinnaur, for up to 30-40 days at 22°C. Additionally, the formulation has extended the shelf life of peaches for up to 6-8 days and bananas for up to 9 days without significant blackening under ambient storage conditions.

Our coating material has undergone in vivo toxicological studies, which have shown that it is non-inflammatory and non-toxic. The coating technology is simple, cost-effective, and has the potential to be an alternative to commercially available animal-based shellac coating in India. Our innovation in developing non-toxic and edible fruit coating materials has the potential to significantly reduce postharvest losses and benefit the agricultural industry in India.