Bacterial Cellulose/Tomato Puree Edible Films as Moisture Barrier Structures in Multicomponent Foods

Edible films have been studied mainly as primary packaging materials, but they may be used as barrier layers between food components, e.g., by reducing the moisture migration between components with contrasting water activities. Since edible films are part of the food itself, components adding sensory appeal (e.g., fruit purees) are usually desirable. The objective of this study was to develop a film to be applied as a moisture barrier between nachos and guacamole. Ten film formulations were prepared according to a simplex centroid design with three components—a polysaccharide matrix (consisting of a 5:1 mixture of bacterial cellulose—BC—and carboxymethyl cellulose), tomato puree (for sensory appeal), and palm olein (to reduce hydrophilicity)—and produced by bench casting. The film with the highest palm olein content (20%) presented the lowest water vapor permeability, and its formulation was used to produce a film by continuous casting. The film was applied as a layer between nachos and guacamole, and presented to 80 panelists. The film-containing snack was preferred and considered as crispier when compared to the snack without the film, suggesting that the film was effective in reducing the moisture migration from the moist guacamole to the crispy nachos.