20 August 2024

Pack to the future

 

At Teagasc Ashtown’s Food Research Centre, Research Officers Lael Walsh and Shivani Pathania are at the forefront of fighting food waste and future-proofing food packaging with their Leaf No Waste project.

For protecting resources and food security, it’s important to come up with viable methods for fighting food waste. To tackle this pressing issue, the Leaf No Waste project at Teagasc Ashtown is investigating interventions at multiple steps along the food production chain. To learn more, TResearch spoke to the project’s team leaders, Lael Walsh and Shivani Pathania.

Lael Walsh (left) and Shivani Pathania inspect basil crops grown at the Food Research Centre at Teagasc Ashtown. Photo credit: Iain White, Maxwell Photography

Can you explain the history of your team within Teagasc?

Lael: The team came together in 2020 when we worked on the seed and concept phases of the Science Foundation Ireland food challenge. We were competing against five other teams for the prize of €2 million. This was the first time any of us were involved in challenge funding. The timelines were short; six to nine months to deliver results and it was during Covid so it was indeed a challenge. For the prize proposal, we expanded the work to grow different crops to test different packaging interventions, so we grew the team to include other researchers in Teagasc.

Shivani: The initial team consisted of Lael and me, expanding the team as we progressed to the prize phase. Lael leads the horticultural team, which includes Orla O’Halloran, Zoia Awan, Daniela Costa, Éamonn Walsh and Anthony Gargan. I lead the packaging team, which comprises Tigist Shonte and Mehraj Fatema Mulla.

What are your core priorities and objectives?

Lael: The Leaf No Waste project has six main tasks, four of which are led by Teagasc.

1. The inclusion of silicon biostimulants in the production of vegetables, fruit and mushrooms.
2. To assess approved food contact materials and novel packaging materials, and their efficacy in extending the shelf life of horticultural produce.
3. Conducting post-harvest testing of packaged produce to generate scenario analyses, benchmarking silicon dosage and packaging transition.
4. Assessing plant responses to silicon uptake, focusing on physiological changes and disease incidence.
5. Assessing environmental impact using life cycle assessment of interventions in growing and packaging.
6. Examining the commercialisation potential of this research.

Can you talk about how your research achieves these objectives? How do you present your findings?

Lael: Food waste is an issue for stakeholders across the supply chain, and customers have been demanding changes to packaging and the removal of single use plastics. This research shows how interventions at production and packaging stages can extend the shelf life of fresh foods. Our research is showing that electrolyte leakage and respiration is reduced, and membrane stability holds for longer with our biostimulant interventions during growth and at post-harvest, along with packaging interventions.

Shivani: We present our findings to the scientific community through literature reviews, original research articles and conferences. For the public, we showcase our work at events like Bord Bia Bloom, ESB Science Blast, and during Science Week. Stakeholders, including industry partners, receive regular updates through meetings, reports and presentations.

What are the key techniques and tools you use to achieve this work?

Shivani: We have explored different packaging formats such as trays, hinged-lid containers, punnets and bags, and use recyclable polymers, such as recycled polyethylene terephthalate. Additionally, we investigate bio-based polymers, including polylactic acid (PLA), cellulose and paper. We have assessed packaging designs like thermoforming, tray sealing and horizontal film form and seal to create tailored solutions for each crop.

One particularly innovative technique we use is the thermoformed package for mushrooms, which uses 100% recyclable material. This method significantly improves mushroom quality and shelf life compared to the traditional tray wrapped in cling film. Our packaging design for strawberries extends the shelf life from 14 to 26 days for the Malling Centenary variety. Additionally, for basil, our packaging solution extends the shelf life from 5 to 10 days. These advancements highlight the effectiveness of our tailored packaging solutions in enhancing the preservation and quality of various crops.

What is the importance of this work in the context of Irish farming and agriculture?

Lael: White button mushrooms are a significant economic driver in Ireland’s horticulture sector, contributing €130 million annually. Improving their post-harvest longevity addresses challenges posed by their high moisture content and rapid metabolism, ensuring better marketability and reduced waste in both domestic and export markets.

For soft fruits like strawberries, optimising packaging materials can significantly enhance shelf life, as demonstrated by our new packaging system extending it up to 26 days. This extension not only increases profitability for growers and suppliers by allowing them to command higher prices during off-season periods, but also facilitates exports to lucrative UK and European markets.

Finally, extending the shelf life of basil from 5 to 10 days results in significantly less food waste and increased value. We are also extracting novel biopolymers and bioactives from rhubarb stems and nettle plant, for potential anti-microbial food packaging applications.

Are there any trends coming up that will affect your work?

Lael: Production systems are under pressure to reduce fertiliser and pesticide input and to lower the environmental impact of food production. This project responds to this in several ways: we are assessing the extent to which silicon biostimulants reduce the need for pesticide application; we are also generating Life Cycle Assessment data for horticulture crops modelling Irish production systems for the first time. This information doesn’t exist currently and will hopefully help the sector understand and report on environmental emissions.

Shivani: Around one-third of global food production is lost or wasted, highlighting the urgency of tackling food waste. Additionally, food waste in landfills contributes significantly to emissions from the agri-food system. This project aligns with the EPA Food Waste Charter and supports the European Plastic Strategy 2030 by promoting sustainable and resilient food systems. Leaf No Waste aims to enhance crop health and develop eco-friendly packaging solutions to extend shelf life and reduce plastic use in fresh produce packaging. We are identifying non-food sources of biopolymers for food packaging applications reducing reliance on food crop-derived biopolymers like PLA.

How would you sum up your team’s key achievements and value?

Shivani: Our team’s ability to integrate knowledge and expertise from multiple disciplines – from agriculture and environmental science to packaging technology and sustainability – is a significant achievement. This not only enhances our understanding of the issues at hand, but also allows us to develop holistic solutions that consider the entire lifecycle of food production and consumption. Leaf No Waste is one of the key projects addressing food waste in Teagasc. As a signatory of the EPA-led Food Waste charter, Teagasc is committed to helping primary producers address food loss and waste.

Meet the team

The full team behind Leaf No Waste brings together key interdisciplinary knowledge on both horticulture and food industry development.

Anthony Gargan, Research Masters Student, UCD/Horticulture Development Department:
“I’m Investigating the effects of biostimulant application on strawberry and spinach physiology and drought response.” 

Daniela Costa, Post-doctoral Researcher, Horticulture Development Department:
“I am investigating the effects of biostimulant application in strawberry production and disease.”

Éamonn Walsh, Postdoctoral Researcher, Horticulture Development Department:
“I’m conducting life cycle assessments on mushroom and strawberry production to evaluate the sustainability of novel plant treatments and food packaging solutions.”

Mehraj Fatema Mulla, Research Officer, Food Industry Development Department:
“I am currently conducting research on the shelf life of strawberries and basil to assess the application of innovative food packaging solutions, specifically modified atmosphere packaging and plant treatments.”

Orla O’Halloran, Research Officer, Horticulture Development Department:
“I am investigating the effect of biostimulant application in horticultural crops, focusing on mushroom production.”

Tigist Shonte, Postdoctoral Researcher, Food Industry Development Department:
“I work on the development of novel packaging systems for horticultural crops and extraction of novel bio-polymers for packaging material development.”

Zoia Awan, Research Officer, Horticulture Development Department:
“My research is investigating the effect of biostimulant application in horticultural crops, focusing on hydroponic and glasshouse production of leafy greens and herbs.”