Shelf Life Test - WVT of Sealed Pouches Objectives Set up a shelf-life test also used to test for water

ater vapor transmission through sealed pouches. Collect and organize data over a period of 10 weeks. Interpret collected data and prepare graphs showing trends for moisture loss/gain, seal integrity and sensory quality over time. Make conclusions regarding effect of different packaging materials on shelf life of sample products. Set up Procedure (Modified ASTM D 3079-72) Food: Pretzels Mini Twists Materials: Heat sealable OPP (code: HSOPP) PVDC coated OPP (code: VOPP) Metalized OPP (Met-OPP) also identified as CEFPACK film Heat Sealer ABC Plus-1000 Balance

Worked in groups of two or three. Each group was assigned one material variable. o One set of 5 pouches to test % weight calculations. o One set of 10 pouches for sensory testing and seal integrity.

Each pouch was labeled with the group name and the pouch number (only for 5 pouches used to test % weight change). o The 5 pouches used for % wt. change were each weighed empty and the data was recorded

Each of the 5 empty pouches was filled with pretzels until the pouch weighed around 57 grams. The final weight was recorded. The remaining 10 pouches were also filled with pretzels so that the pouches were all similar in size.

All of the pouches were sealed and the setting was recorded. Each pouch was tested for leaks and seal integrity using the Visual Check machine and results. All 15 pouches were placed in the environmental test chamber for weekly analysis.

Weekly Procedure The pouches were removed from the test chamber and the temperature and relative humidity conditions of the chamber were recorded. For each week the weight of the 5 weight pouches was measured and recorded. The pouches were weighed as quickly as possible to prevent the change in room conditions from affecting the results. The seal integrity of the samples for the sensory testing/seal was checked using the Visual Check and the results were recorded. Only the seal of the packages being tested that day needed to be checked. The results were record as pass/fail. Sensory Testing Observations of the contents of the pouch were made. Changes in texture, flavor, odor and degree of liking were noted. The observations were recorded on the sensory sheet. After testing, the pouches were all returned to the test chamber. For the sensory scoring the measurements were made from the left side of the line at 0 cm. to the tick mark. The distance of the tick mark was recorded and used for sensory evaluation.

Results and Discussion Table 1: Product Percent Weight Change for All of the Materials Product % Wt. Change for materials (grams) Week 1 2 Met. OPP 0 0.077062304 HS-OPP 0 4.399819652 PVDC OPP 0 1.096

3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

0.283682547 0.609292839 0.493818223 0.654894309 0.858036942 1.285297059 1.495641598 1.607662854

5.242081899 6.01170086 6.643958243 7.255790845 7.765575398 8.683799557 8.795349582 9.453893661

1.986 2.792 3.897 3.789 4.342 5.574 5.985 6.381

10 9.5 9 8.5 8 7.5 7 6.5 6 5.5 5 4.5 4 3.5 3 2.5 2 1.5 1 0.5 0

Product % Weight Change for Materials

Product % Weight Change (g)

HS-OPP Met. OPP PVDC-OPP

5 6 Week

10

Graph 1: Product Percent Weight Change for Materials Table 2: Sensory Evaluation Scores of the Product Packaged in Metalized OPP Flavor (stalefresh) 15.24 Sensory Scores Texture Odor (strong (soggyoff odor-no off crispy) odor) 15.24 15.24 Degree of liking (dislike extremely-like extremely) 15.24

Week 1

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

14.61 13.34 7.62 12.065 5.08 3.81 6.35 5.08 2.54

14.61 15.24 13.97 13.335 13.97 12.065 8.255 8.89 3.81

14.61 15.24 12.065 15.24 12.065 10.795 10.16 11.43 5.08

12.7 12.38 12.065 12.065 2.54 7.63 6.35 5.715 0

Sensory Evaluation Scores for Metalized OPP

10 9 8 7 Week 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 5 10 15 Degree of Positive Sensory (cm) 20 flavor (stale-fresh) degree of liking (dislike extremely-like extremely) odor (strong off odor-no off odor) texture (soggy-crispy)

Graph 2: Sensory Evaluation Scores for the Product Packaged in Metalized OPP Pouch The relationship between Graph 1 and Graph 2 shows how percent weight change affects the products sensory scores. Over time as the product gained moisture, the sensory scores became lower. Based off our knowledge from previous labs we can determine that the product weight changes were caused from moisture permeation through the packaging materials. Since the product is a dry product with a very low water activity, it naturally gains moisture or water vapor

from the air in order to reach its equilibrium point. From the data it was concluded that the best material to package the pretzels in was the Metalized OPP. This was the best of the three materials that were tested because it had the lowest percent weight change in the product over time, meaning it provided the best barrier protection from water vapor transmission. This property allowed the product to stay fresh for a longer length of time and provided it with a longer shelf life than the products packaged in the other materials. This outcome is what was predicted based off our knowledge of metalized polymers. Metalized materials are most often chosen for packaging products that need a longer shelf life because it has very good gas and moisture barrier properties and also serves as a light barrier. The sensory scores in Graph 2 show the trends in the pretzel properties over the course of ten weeks. These sensory scores are what would help us determine the shelf life of the packaged product. Looking at Graph 2 we can see how the scores are relatively consistent with the least change from week to week until about the sixth week. The flavor of the pretzels and the degree of liking seemed to be affected the most by time so there is a larger amount of change for each week in the scores. The texture and odor stayed relatively consistent with slight decreases over time until about the tenth week. Even though these properties seemed to last for up to nine weeks, the degree of liking and the flavor was not high enough for the pretzels to still be within their shelf life. The eighth week is probably where we would conclude that the end of the shelf life is. The shelf life for the product packaged in this material would be much longer if the pouches were nitrogen flushed before being sealed, as bags of chips and pretzels sold in stores are in order to help preserve the product for a longer length of time. The second best choice of material to package the pretzels in would be the PVDC OPP because it had the second lowest % weight change in the pretzels by the tenth week. This is also what was expected because PVDC is used for household saran wrap and is known for its moisture barrier properties. It was predicted that the Heat Set OPP would be the worst because it has no other barrier materials. Also the heat set property of the material would make the seal strength weak because the material would require a much higher temperature to form the seal. Although we did not see any seal breaks for any of the three materials over the ten weeks, we still saw noticeable weight increases due to the permeation of water vapor through the material. We had expected to see some seal failures for the HS OPP which would have caused a much

more dramatic increase in product weight. Even without seal failures it was still clear to see how poor of a barrier material HS OPP is when looking at the % weight changes. Based off the data shown in Graph 2, and by comparing the relationship between my sensory scores and % weight change of the Metalized OPP to the % weight changes of the other materials, their shelf life can also be predicted. Our data and sensory scores for Metalized OPP showed that the shelf life of the pretzels would be around 8 weeks, or when the % weight change reached around 1.5% to 1.8%. The PVDC OPP reached this weight change around the third week, so the shelf life of the product would probably be 3 weeks when packaged in this material. The HS OPP passed this % weight change in less than a week, so it can be concluded that the shelf life would be no more than one week for pretzels in a HS OPP pouch. Conclusion Overall, the objectives of this laboratory experiment were successful. We learned how to set up a shelf life test and how to collect data. The data for all three materials was able to be collected and compared. The data allowed us to see how the properties of the different materials affected the product over time and its shelf life. From comparing the collected data and my personal sensory scores, the shelf life for the products in each material were able to be determined.