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Abstract: BACKGROUND: Little information is available regarding the effect of dietary fibers added into edible coatings on quality attributes of ready‐to‐eat fruits. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of sodium alginate (AL) and chitosan (CH) edible coatings enriched with four different dietary fibers (apple fiber, orange fiber, inulin and oligofructose) on microbiological, nutritional, physico‐chemical and sensorial properties of ready‐to‐eat fresh blueberries stored for 18 days at 5 °C. RESULTS: The most encouraging results were found for CH coatings (with and without fibers) which significantly inhibited the growth of mesophilic bacteria and yeasts/molds (reductions up to 1.9 log CFU g−1), reduced decay rate by more than 50%, enhanced antioxidant properties, retained fruit firmness, delayed off‐odor development and improved overall visual quality of blueberries. Oligofructose and orange fiber added to CH coatings enhanced antioxidant properties of fruits and allowed higher reductions in yeast/mold counts compared to the use of CH alone. CH‐based coatings enriched with inulin, oligofructose and apple fiber extended sensory shelf life of blueberries by 6 days. AL coatings (with and without fiber) allowed delaying fungal decay and also retaining antioxidant properties but did not improve the microbiological and sensory quality of fruits. CONCLUSION: The results proved that fiber‐enriched CH treatments allowed the maintenance of freshness and the improvement of the quality of ready‐to‐eat blueberries. It might be an interesting option to offer consumers a healthy product with prebiotic potential and an extended shelf life. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Eight phenolic compounds were detected in blueberry fruit and leaf extracts. [•] Blueberry leaf extracts had high antimicrobial ability. [•] Chitosan coating containing leaf extract showed some degrees of delaying fruit decay. [•] Coated fruit with MA packaging controlled decay and retained phenolic content. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports the results of a study carried out to verify the applicability of the EN 1787 method, which uses the Electron Spin Resonance (ESR) technique for the identification of irradiated plant-origin foods with health benefits. The method was tested on samples of herbal ingredients of Plant Food Supplements (PFSs), nuts and fresh blueberries. Untreated and irradiated samples of Camellia sinensis (leaves) Ginkgo biloba (leaves) , Glycine max (seeds) , Silybum marianum (fruits), Vaccinium myrtillus (fruits), almonds, hazelnuts, peanuts, pistachios, walnuts and fresh blueberries were analysed. The work includes an inter-laboratory blind test involving five Italian laboratories that perform routine analyses for the official control of irradiated food. A total of 180 untreated and irradiated samples of PFS ingredients, nuts and fresh blueberries were analysed. The analyses on the irradiated samples were replicated even a long time after irradiation (up to two years depending on the matrix) to test the reliability of the method throughout the shelf life of the products. The results were matrix-dependent: all the 5 kGy irradiated nuts and the 1 kGy-irradiated blueberries were correctly classified, whereas herbal ingredients showed complex ESR spectra with spurious signals which often prevented the correct classification of the sample. • EN 1787 detects 5 kGy irradiated nuts within two years from irradiation. • EN 1787 detects 1 kGy irradiated fresh blueberries within three weeks from irradiation. • Plant food supplement (PFS) ingredients generally show complex ESR spectra. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]