Shelf-life monitoring of broccoli packed with different films

The shelf-life of broccoli (cv. Marathon) stored at 6°C and 95% R.H. under different packaging conditions, was studied up to 35 days, using physical, chemical and microbiological indexes to assess the product quality throughout the storage time. Five different polyolefinic films were utilized in the study, three perforated, but characterized by a different percentage of perforated area (OPTI 330 A, OPTI 330 C, OPTI 330 E), and two anti-fog non-perforated (MRX, AFG-E 60). Among the different perforated films tested, the OPTI 330 A, characterized by a considerable lower percentage of holes, gave the worst results, in comparison with all the other films. The best results were obtained using the AFG-E 60 film, while no appreciable differences could be pointed out when OPTI 330 C, OPTI 330 E and MRX films were utilized.