SBIR Phase I: Edible, water soluble corn zein films for shelf life extension and improved safety of perishable foods

SBIR一期项目的更广泛影响将是显著减少食物浪费。食物浪费是一项极其重要的全球性挑战。全世界每年生产的供人类消费的粮食中，约有30%被损失或浪费，足以养活饥饿人口。据估计，粮食损失和浪费也占全球温室气体排放总量的8%。通过延长保质期来减少浪费的方法不仅是无效的，而且还加剧了其他全球性问题，例如通过广泛使用塑料包装对环境产生不利影响。拟议的解决方案使用非转基因玉米来制造新的可食用涂层，通过将整个和切块的新鲜水果和蔬菜的保质期延长一倍，从而减少食物浪费，使所有社区都能更容易地获得新鲜食物，并改善食物浪费对环境的影响。拟议的项目将推进使用玉米玉米蛋白的过程的翻译，玉米玉米蛋白被认为是一种不溶于水的蛋白质，因此在食品生产中功能化的成本过高。这阻碍了它在食品涂料中的应用。该项目推进了一个相对简单的过程，将商品级玉米蛋白转化为易溶于水的配方。该项目将开发一种有效的可食用食品涂层，其中包含其他植物性成分，如脂肪酸和增塑剂，以创建一种混合蛋白质/脂质膜，该膜(1)具有出色的气体屏障和防潮性能，并延长许多服务不足的商品的保质期；(2)能够以合理的成本生产；(3)可在现有食品加工设备上单次应用。研发计划将针对各种新鲜农产品的涂层，以便在可能的情况下与竞争对手的涂层进行比较，并在可用的选择很少的情况下提供新的涂层选择。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact of this SBIR Phase 1 project will be in significant reduction of food waste. Food waste is a critically important global challenge. Approximately 30% of food produced for human consumption around the world is either lost or wasted each year – more than enough to feed the hungry. It is estimated that food loss and waste also contribute 8% of the total global greenhouse gas emissions. The methods used to reduce waste by extending shelf life are not only ineffective, but they also exacerbate other global problems, such as adversely impacting the environment through extensive use of plastic packaging. The proposed solution uses non-GMO corn to create new edible coatings that will reduce food waste by doubling the shelf life of whole and cut fresh fruits and vegetables, enabling greater access to fresh foods for all communities and improving the environmental impact of food waste. The proposed project will advance translation for a process using corn zein, considered a water insoluble protein and therefore prohibitively expensive to functionalize in food production. This has prevented its use in food coatings. This project advances translation of a relatively simple process to convert commercial grade zein to a readily water-soluble formulation. The project will develop an effective edible food coating that incorporates other plant-based ingredients, such as fatty acids and plasticizers, to create a hybrid protein/lipid film that (1) exhibits excellent gas barrier as well as moisture barrier properties and extends the shelf life of many under-served commodities; (2) can be generated at reasonable cost; and (3) can be delivered in a single application on existing food processing equipment. The R&D plan will target coatings for a variety of fresh produce that allows comparison with competitive coatings where possible, and provides new coating options where few options are available.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.