Production and Evaluation of Chitosan Film Incorporated Licorice Extract for Fish Packaging

Packaging is an important process to keep high quality of marine foods. Due to huge pollution of natural resources by synthetic plastics, using biodegradable films and packages has been considered as a proper alternative. In this study, chitosan use in order to produce biodegradable and edible films and licorice extract (5, 10 and 15 % v/v) were incorporated to improve antimicrobial and antioxidant properties. Finally, best film applied to preserve refrigerated silver crap (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) fillets during 12 days period. Results showed that best structural properties observed in chitosan films that contained 10% v/v licorice extract. Fish fillets, whichwere coated with chitosan films that contained 10% licorice extract, showed lowest amount of peroxide value, thiobarbiotoric acid, total volatile basic nitrogen, total plate count and phycrortophic bacteria in compare with other treatments specially control. Consequently, present study confirms that this packaging has significant positive effect of preservation ability of films for as packing materials for foods such as silver carp.