Extend Produce Shelf Life: New Tech
- MIT and the singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART) are tackling global food waste with a novel approach: injecting produce with melatonin using biodegradable microneedles.
- currently, over 30% of the world's food is lost post-harvest.
- Benedetto Marelli, associate professor at MIT, said this marks the first accomplished application of microneedles to extend the shelf life of fresh-cut crops.
Combat global food waste and enhance the freshness of your fruits and vegetables with groundbreaking microneedle technology. MIT and SMART researchers are revolutionizing produce preservation by injecting plants with melatonin,a natural hormone. This innovative technique, detailed in News Directory 3, uses biodegradable microneedles too significantly extend the shelf life of fresh produce, like pak choy, by days – even weeks! The research offers a critical solution to the persistent challenge of post-harvest waste, potentially increasing the availability of nutritious food and reducing waste.Discover how this innovative approach is poised to transform the food industry and contribute to a more enduring future. Find out what’s next for food preservation.
Microneedle Technology Extends Shelf Life of Produce
MIT and the singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART) are tackling global food waste with a novel approach: injecting produce with melatonin using biodegradable microneedles. This innovative technique promises to extend the shelf life of harvested plants, possibly feeding more than a billion people worldwide.
currently, over 30% of the world’s food is lost post-harvest. While refrigeration is a common preservation method, it’s energy-intensive and inaccessible in many regions. Researchers believe their silk microneedle patches, which painlessly penetrate the plant’s surface, offer a viable alternative or complement.
Benedetto Marelli, associate professor at MIT, said this marks the first accomplished application of microneedles to extend the shelf life of fresh-cut crops. The team chose melatonin, a natural plant hormone, to regulate post-harvest physiology.
in a study published in Nano Letters, researchers applied melatonin-filled microneedle patches to pak choy.The treatment extended shelf life by four days at room temperature and 10 days when refrigerated, potentially increasing the amount of produce that reaches consumers.
Sarojam Rajani, a senior principal investigator at Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory in Singapore, emphasized the importance of addressing post-harvest waste, particularly in emerging markets where crops struggle to reach markets.
Marelli’s lab has been exploring silk microneedles for years, using them to deliver nutrients and monitor plant health. These microneedles, made from nontoxic and biodegradable silk fibroin protein, can be manufactured at scale.
Researchers confirmed the microneedles’ delivery capabilities by injecting fluorescent dye into pak choy bases. They found no difference in shelf life between plants sprayed or dipped in melatonin versus untreated plants. However, the microneedle-treated plants showed important improvement.
At room temperature, untreated pak choy yellowed within days, becoming unsellable. Microneedle-treated plants remained green for five days, retaining their saleable value until the eighth day. Refrigerated, treated plants remained green until day 25, delaying yellowing by about five days.
Monika Jangir, formerly of Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, noted that treated plants exhibited higher antioxidant activity. Gene analysis revealed that melatonin triggered a protective reaction, preserving chlorophyll and adjusting hormones to slow aging.
Yangyang Han, a research scientist at SMART