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As the world population is expected to rise to nearly eleven billion by 2050, a concomitant rise in the demand for fresh fruits and vegetables (FFV) is expected. FFV are highly perishable and constitute 20% of the global food wastage with nearly 30% of the losses occurring at the postharvest (PH) phase. This represents a challenge to ensure food and nutrition security for future generations. A proposed solution is the use of edible coatings incorporating natural ingredients that have the potential to reduce PH losses. Rising consumer demands for healthy, safe and sustainable food have translated to a greater acceptance of natural edible coatings. Edible coatings are hydrocolloid-based layers often applied to the surface of FFV to confer physical protection as well as extending shelf-life and consumer attraction. Although there has been extensive research on edible coatings, their widespread use has been limited due to a number of challenges such as a lack of standards and regulations, limited market research on consumer opinion and purchase intent, difficulties in scaling-up for industrial application and environmental sustainability concerns. This article attempts to shed light on the drivers fostering, as well as barriers impeding, commercial uptake of edible coatings in the FFV industry.

Moringa oleifera Lam. has long been used in traditional medicine and for culinary purposes. This study aimed at determining the phenolic content as well as the antioxidative properties of leaf and pod extracts of M. oleifera Lam. in vitro and in mayonnaise and bulk sunflower oil. The methanolic leaf and pod extracts (MLE and MPE) had the highest phenolic content and exhibited the highest antioxidant activities in the Ferric Reducing Antioxidant Potential (FRAP) assay (1,298 ± 4.1 μmol Fe [II]/g fresh weight) compared with the aqueous extracts. Moreover, MLE was the most effective free radical scavenger and metal chelator in the deoxyribose and iron chelation assays, respectively. The antioxidant efficacy of MLE and MPE at 0.2 and 0.4% was compared with that of butylated hydroxytoluene (0.02%) in bulk sunflower oil and mayonnaise. The peroxide and conjugated diene values showed that the extracts effectively protected both systems. MLE at 0.4% exhibited the most potent antioxidant effect. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONSReactive oxygen species, generated by lipid oxidation, can compromise the safety of foods resulting in harmful effects on human health. There is much interest in natural antioxidants as an effective means to retard oxidative changes in foods due to toxicological concerns associated with synthetic antioxidants. M. oleifera L. is currently underutilized as a food plant despite scientific evidence of its nutritional quality and health benefits mainly ascribed to the presence of antioxidant phytochemicals. This study was aimed at determining the phenolic content and the in vitro antioxidant properties of M. oleifera leaf and pod extracts. The effect of the extracts on oxidative stability in mayonnaise and bulk sunflower oil was also evaluated. Results show that this food plant represents an untapped potential that could be used as a source of natural food additives to retard oxidative damage in various food systems and thus prolonging the shelf life of lipid-bearing foods.

Natural products as disease remedies have a history of near 5,000 years (India, China and Greece), and even today, in this advanced technological age, a revival of interest is being witnessed in the use of natural or plant-based therapeutic agents for the treatment of several pathological conditions. Citrus fruits have been utilised as a traditional medicine in India, China, Korea and Japan, and many studies have highlighted the various biological properties of their phytophenolics which are suggested to be responsible for the prevention of degenerative diseases such as diabetes and cancer. With the background of comprehensive studies conducted on Mauritian citrus fruits, this chapter reviews some of the literature data on the phytophenolic contents, vitamin C composition and antioxidant functions of citrus extracts and emphasises on their potential applications in nutrition management programmes for diabetes and cancer chemoprevention.