Edible Coatings

Surrounding a food with an edible coating serves as a unique food preservation method. The purpose of edible coatings is fourfold:

1.  To increase shelf life by acting as a barrier to moisture, oxygen, carbon dioxide, volatile aromas, and other compounds whose loss would lead to deterioration.
2. To impart improved handling characteristics, such as the ability to bend more easily without breaking.
3. To improve appearance through increased gloss and color.
4. To serve as a vehicle for added ingredients such as flavors, antioxidants, antimicrobials, etc.

Although commonly used for vegetables and fruits (cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, pumpkins, summer squash, apples, bananas, guavas, mangoes, papaya, melons, nectarines, and citrus fruits), edible coatings are also used for candy, cheese, nuts, dried fruit (prevents stickiness, especially in raisins and dates), eggs in their shell (as moisture and bacterial barrier), and processed meats (especially sausages), poultry, and fish.

Edible coatings can be produced from carbohydrate or protein materials, but the most common edible coatings are lipid-based (beeswax, candelilla wax, carnuba wax, rice bran wax), oils (parafin oil, mineral oil, vegetable oils), and petroleum-based waxes (paraffin, polyethylene wax).