Dried-Fruit Storage: An Analysis of Package Headspace Atmosphere Changes

The quality of packaged dried foods depends on storage conditions and is determined largely by the initial gas composition inside and the transference through the container. The aim of this work was to analyze the O₂ and CO₂ concentrations within the internal atmosphere of the packaging. In this study, dried apricots and raisins were packaged in glass jars and polypropylene trays thermosealed with different polymers, and stored at 5, 15, 25, and 35 °C. Some trays were flushed with nitrogen just before sealing. In addition, the work relates to other previous papers to investigate the effect of these gases and packages on the stored products, and compares the influence of permeable and impermeable containers on food quality parameters. When packages were flushed with nitrogen before sealing, the O₂ level in the headspace increased until the outside O₂ concentration was reached. The CO₂ concentration increased over time, regardless of the initial atmosphere. Nitrogen had a great influence on the concentration of O₂, but not on that of CO₂. Finally, this paper shows that the films and initial gas used in this study had no significant effect on the quality of the stored dried fruit.