Effects of packaging film and storage temperature on the quality of fresh ginseng packaged in modified atmosphere

The effects of packaging film and storage temperature on the quality of fresh ginseng (Panax Ginseng) packaged in modified atmospheres and storage at 0 and 10°C for 150 days were determined. The changes in chemical compositions were also measured before and after storage. The results showed that modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) significantly extended the storage life of fresh ginseng with high quality for 150 d. The decay rate was only 2.4 and 1.3% after 150 days of storage at the combinations of 0°C-0.05 mm and 0°C-0.07 mm, respectively. The results of saponin analysis indicated that the contents of total saponin were not changed much in treatments, decreased 8.4% for treatment of 0°C-0.07 mm, 17.6% for the control at the end of storage at 0°C. The content of reducing sugar increased from 238.7 to 306.5%, total sugar showed similar increasing trend as reducing sugar after 150 days of storage in film packages at 0°C. While pectin content decreased 19.2-21.5% for MAP, decreased 26.7% for control after end of storage at 0°C. The reduction of pectin content was much remarkable at 10°C. It was considered that MAP was very effective storage method for keeping quality better with minimal quality loss and lower decay rate at lower temperature.