Applying gelatine:chitosan film loaded with nanoemulsified garlic essential oil/alpha-tocopherol as active packaging of sliced Omega-3-rich mortadella

The effect of using gelatine:chitosan (G:Ch) based films as carriers of nanoemulsified garlic essential oil/alpha-tocopherol (0.4% v/v) on the shelf-life and sensory acceptance of sliced omega-3-rich mortadella stored at 6 +/- 1 degrees C for 7 days, was investigated. Three treatments were evaluated: mortadella packed with active (T-1) and passive films (T-2) and without (T-3) films. T-1 presented the highest effectiveness against the inoculated Listeria monocytogenes and Pseudomonas aeruginosa and retarded spoilage bacteria growth. The colour coordinates, pH and Aw of T-1 were affected by the active film. TBARs values from T-2 and T-3 overcame the threshold of 1.0 mg MDA kg(-1) sample at day 5. Panellists scored all sensory attributes between 6 (slightly liked) and 7 (moderately liked) within all treatments. The active G:Ch films developed has the potential to be used as good preservative carrier in sliced mortadella during refrigerated storage, and thus, this product can be processed without synthetic preservative.