SBIR-STTR Award

50% of produce goes uneaten. Loss in the produce supply chain costs $80B each year in the United States and represents a tremendous waste of key natural resources: land water and energy. A major cause of loss in the agricultural supply chain is spoilage brought on by fungi and bacteria. Post-harvest pathogenic damage can be mitigated by a variety of strategies such as applying fungicides ozone chlorine or selectively ripening the produce near the point of consumer purchase. Often these techniques are not suitable options due to consumer preference or specific commodity demands. This project seeks to develop a system for integrating sustained delivery of organic fungicides into horti cultural product packaging. Specifically this research targets the berry and grape produce commodities. Several essential oil derivatives of herbs are known to possess fungicidal properties. However application of these low-volatility oils as sprays can result in undesirable organoleptic effects such as changes to the taste profiles of target commodities. This project will develop a method to deliver volatile active ingredients overtime via an in-package insert. By deploying the active ingredient essential oils as a low- concentration vapor we aim to slow fungal growth without negatively affecting taste profile. We measure success by quantifying fungal growth suppression in vitro across a range of release materials. Essential oil release can be quantified by a range ofrd established material science characterization techniques. A 3 party taste panel will screen final formulations for organoleptic effects. Finally in partnership with established berry firms we will test our product's capacity to reduce fungal growth in commercial environments.

Each year in the United States nearly half of all fruits and vegetables grown will go to waste. Crop loss is an especially pressing issue for berry growers where short postharvest shelf-life due to fungal infection plagues the industry. Despite these challenges consumer demand for berries has grown steadily over the past decades to an annual market value of $7.1 billion. This project seeks to facilitate to commercialization of an antifungal clamshell insert capable of slowing the growth of fungus to increase berry shelf-life. The proprietary insert technology offers controlled release of antifungal actives derived from organic essential oils thereby effectively inhibiting fungal growth. This project targets continual product improvement a focus on sustainable packaging and third-party verification of efficacy. At the conclusion of Phase II and the start of Phase III Hazel Technologies Inc. will be equipped with a sustainable antifungal clamshell insert capable of extending the shelf-life of various berries as well as the logistics to produce these pads at scale. The work will demonstrate the utility of organic essential oils to prevent fungal growth in a postharvest context for berries and act as a platform antifungal technology for other fruits. Finally this award will support third-party testing of the technology at commercially relevant scales under both academic and commercial supply chain conditions which will provide confidence and results for our product with potential customers.