Nanotechnology - A shelf life extension strategy for fruits and vegetables

Most harvested fruits and vegetables cannot be stored in natural conditions for a satisfactory shelf life duration due to their perishable nature. There are conventional preservation methods but have the limitations of high production cost and/or unsatisfactory shelf-life and/or undesirable residue, etc. Because of a number of unique properties, nanotechnology-related shelf life extension strategies have the potential to compensate the shortcomings of traditional preservation methods. In this review article, basic principles and recent highly efficient applications of nanotechnology-related shelf life extension strategies in fruits and vegetables are described. Data analysis of these strategies are carried out to make readers more intuitive to the research status. Finally, the recommendations for future research of nanotechnology in fruits and vegetables shelf life extension are discussed. According to statistical data, nano-zinc dioxide is the most mentioned nanomaterials in the references, followed by silver nano particles. Nanotechnology-related combined preservation strategies and nanotechnology-related intelligent labeling system are considered as valuable areas for future researches. In addition, modeling studies, legal aspects, safety concerns, cost-benefit analyses and technical optimization need to be taken into account in future researches.