Application of active packaging technology to extend the shelf-life of diced onions

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Nova Agri Inc. is a Canadian producer of fresh vegetables, fruits, and other ready-to-eat products (e.g., juice, fresh-cut vegetables). One of the products produced by the company is ready-to-eat/-use fresh-cut diced onions, intended for restaurants and caterings, as well as consumers who have little time for food preparation. Diced onion must have optimum hygienic, sensorial, and nutritional properties in order to ensure consumer's acceptance. Moreover, adequate shelf life must be available in order to facilitate product distribution and sales. However, achieving long shelf-life for diced onion is challenging due to the leaking of nutrients from injured plant tissues and high water activity present in the headspace, both of which tend to promote microbial growth. In addition, cumulative deterioration due to respiration and biochemical activities further reduce the shelf-life of the diced onions. Nova Agri Inc. is interested to explore different methods to increase the shelf-life of their packaged diced onion products by exploiting combined modified atmosphere and active packaging approach