The phenomenon of browning is a common problem for bagged, fresh-cut lettuce, romaine, and other salads, which limits shelf-life and converts attractive products into a sticky, unpleasant mess. To make matters worse, seasonal factors can also have a big impact on the spread and speed of browning, making a limited shelf-life even shorter.
With this in mind, the shelf-life solutions specialist Food freshly has developed a range of nature-based products which significantly increase the commercial life of fresh-cut salads. Targeted at small and medium-sized producers looking for a cost-effective means to tackle browning that doesn't cost the earth, Food freshly's proven, food-safe solutions can prevent discoloration by as much as eight days.
Food freshly Director of Technical Sales Benjamin Singh said: "Fresh-cut lettuce makes up the majority of fresh-cut produce everywhere, but while larger companies are able to use modified atmosphere packaging to stop browning, many small-medium sized producers are still struggling with the problem. However, even the use of modified atmosphere solutions is no guarantee, with many companies finding they are not able to control browning as effectively as they would like."
The problem of seasonally-influenced browning is an added challenge for growers, with the process occurring more rapidly at certain times of year, in particular during summer.
Root vegetables
However, potential applications for Food freshly's solutions don't stop with lettuce and salads. Singh sees significant potential for fresh-cut fruits and even root vegetables. He believes ready-to-eat root vegetables offer untapped potential to European grocery retailers from a sales point of view and consumers. 
"Food freshly treatments are well-suited to ready-to-eat fruits, such as sliced apples. If you use an organic treatment like Food freshly, you get a 10 to 12-day shelf-life. You can eat them with your fingers, so you don't need a fork, and that's an advantage that very few pre-cut fruits have," explained Singh.
"Preparing root vegetables can be an awful job to do, so there's a big potential here for customers who are interested in increasing their market share and offering fresh-cut product options that go beyond just lettuce and salads," he said.
Singh argued that further growth in the ready-to-eat segment can be best achieved by innovating with new products. "I think the market for fresh-cut lettuce has probably reached its limit in Europe, and there are many other items that people are missing out on and could do well in retail. I think something the industry agrees on is that the growth potential lies in fresh-cut fruits and vegetables other than lettuce. We really want to help promote that."
Food freshly will be exhibiting at Fruit Logistica Berlin 2023 in Hall 21, Stand C-41.
For more information:
Benjamin Singh
FOOD freshly
Email: Benjamin.singh@food-freshly.eu
www.food-freshly.eu