Technological watch

Fresh-cut broccoli is a highly demanded product due to its convenience and high content of bioactive compounds. Unfortunately, this product shows rapid senescence and anoxia generation problems, especially when storage temperature varies. Therefore, perforation-mediated modified atmosphere packaging (PM-MAP) of broccoli florets, in different temperature scenarios, was studied. Polypropylene films with different levels of laser perforation were evaluated. After packaging, florets were stored at two temperatures: 2 °C, and 2 °C + 7 °C (during 2 d before sampling). PM-MAP slightly modified the internal composition of O2 (14–20 kPa) and CO2 (0.9–5 kPa) and allowed us to preserve the external quality and bioactive compounds of broccoli florets throughout 21 d, even at 7 °C. The generation of anoxia was avoided at both temperatures. PM-MAP kept broccoli mass loss below 0.5% and preserved its sensory quality. The perforation level affected evolution of firmness and glucosinolate content, especially with increasing temperature. Broccolis packaged in the film with fewer perforations showed higher firmness (0.73 ± 0.09 N/mm) and total glucosinolate content (10 ± 0.3 mg/g) compared to broccolis packaged in films with higher perforations (0.59 ± 0.05 N/mm and 8.60 ± 0.2 mg/g). Therefore, the perforation level should be taken into account in the design of packaging for fresh-cut products.