Pomace-Cassava as Antioxidant Bio-Based Coating Polymers for Cheeses

Fruit and vegetable-based materials, rich in phenolic pigments, and especially anthocyanins, have attracted attention as promising sources for bio-based antioxidant coating polymers, being a non-toxic, natural, ecofriendly, and green label solution to lower oxidation degradation in oil-water emulsion food, such as cheeses. However, could their pomaces also be used in such materials? This work has investigated the use of jabuticaba peels and red cabbage stir pomace extracts as antioxidant additives for cheese coating polymers. The antioxidant capacity of the jabuticaba-red cabbage pomace cassava-based polymer was evaluated in vitro (total phenolic, total anthocyanin content and DPPH scavenging %) and in vivo (by coating Minas Frescal cheeses and monitoring their peroxide index increase during a 9-day shelf life, at 10 °C). An in vitro characterization has indicated a high antioxidant capacity for both pomace extracts, with a higher capacity observed for the jabuticaba peels. In vivo investigations indicated that the pomace-starch coatings have protected cheeses up to 8.5 times against oxidation when compared to the control, with a synergistic protector effect among pomaces. Physical–chemical characterizations (pH, acidity, total solids, ash, total protein, fat content and syneresis) have indicated no coating interference on the cheese’s development.