New packaging makes edible flowers easier

A new storage technique makes it possible for edible flowers to maintain a higher quality, making them available to more cooks, U.S. researchers said. Flowers have a large surface-area-to-volume ratio and many delicately attached parts making them susceptible to petal loosening, discoloration and wilting, the researchers said. Compared with other kinds of flowers, edible flowers are even more vulnerable to post- harvest quality loss than cut flowers, because their stems are cut very short and they are stored without additional water supply. Currently, edible flowers are often packed in clam shell containers and must be used within two to five days of harvest, which requires air transportation to reach most regions. The study, published in the Journal of Food Science, compared a new controlled release technology along with modified atmosphere packaging to the packing technique that is currently being used. For example, freshly harvested carnations and snapdragons were packaged in trays with a 1-MVP strip -- a synthetic plant growth regulator -- sealed with a gas permeable film and stored at 41 degrees Fahrenheit had significantly reduced dehydration and maintained higher overall quality compared to flowers packaged commercially in plastic clam shell containers, the researchers said.